The light that had no source dimly lit up the area around Layla. She stared fixedly at the being that had just violated her. Looking closely at the man, she could observe the same peculiarities that she had noticed on the statues outside. 

The man was human, but he was also… more. There wasn’t really a better way to describe it. He had a powerfully built body with an olive tan complexion. His head was shaven like a monk, which matched his black and tan robes. His facial features were perfectly symmetrical all the way down to the number of hairs in his strong eyebrows and full eyelashes. His strange copper green eyes held a faint radiance. They didn’t glow per se, but if you stared into them long enough, you would think they were on the cusp of doing so. He was too attractive. Argo wasn’t even Layla’s type, but she couldn’t help but be dazed by his physical appearance. It didn’t help that the aura around him was soothing and drew you in like an insect to a shining light.

Standing beside him was very similar to being next to Dory and Atom. Their features were supernaturally enhanced. Although it was much easier to be around Dory and Atom. Maybe they could control it? Layla assumed it had something to do with ascending, but she could only speculate at this point. She knew too little about anything, which brought up a good point. This being seemed willing to help her currently, so maybe she could use this opportunity to glean some knowledge of what the crap was going on. 

Getting ahold of her wits, she sat down cross-legged from the being and introduced herself. 

“Hello, my name is Layla Breezewalker.” She said cordially. Layla didn’t feel that way, but it never hurt to be friendly to a being that could rip your soul out with a thought. 

He didn’t respond immediately as his face scrunched up in contemplation. Argo’s face eventually lit up, Layla assumed he remembered something, then he spoke, “Ah, Breezewalker, Breezewalker. Now that is a name I haven’t heard in ages. Oh! Oh, dear. I haven’t introduced myself, have I?” 

“It is good to meet you Ms. Breezwalker. My name is Argo, Tower master of the Tower of Mazzaroth.” He looked at Layla and gave her a small, seated bow full of practiced grace.

Layla bowed back, much less gracefully, “Well met Argo.” 

He looked brightly at Layla with a smile that made Layla's stomach flip. The damn man was too beautiful. It was really distracting. 

“So, what brings you to the tower. Actually, how did you come to be in this tower. While I appreciate the company, you should have not been able to come here. You don’t belong.” 

Layla shrugged, “I have no clue how I came to be here. I searched and the tower appeared.”

The monk's face went pensive, “While you don’t belong here, there are ways to be welcomed into a different iterations tower. But there would need to be several criteria met, and not to be rude, cousin, you are far too young to have met those. I would need to use a skill to see exactly what is going on. Do you mind if I scan you?” 

“You literally just ripped my soul out and now you want to ask permission?” Layla said with a raised eyebrow. 

He laughed, “Too true, Ms. Breezewalker. Too true. I may have been a little excited. It has been over ten thousand years since someone has graced this tower in person. While I do have access to other iterations as the tower master. I cannot leave it for very long without assistance. I am sorry about that. It is considered rude to use skills on people without asking permission.”

Ten thousand years. Layla was floored at the number. It was inconceivable. Was this what it was to ascend and become immortal? She knew that was the goal, but she hadn't really turned her mind to it. She lacked so much context to what she was getting into that she hadn't really considered the most sot after part of ascending. To live... forever. Here she was talking to a being who hadn't had a visitor in over ten millennia. It was discombobulating to think about. 

The average human lived to around a hundred and fifty years. This was primarily due to the advancement in technology. If you had enough money, you could even double that. While ascending was the route to true physical immortality, there were many other options out there, but they came with their own costs. The human body was a complex biomechanical carbon-based life form. Just like anything that needed fuel to keep persisting, it would eventually break down without outside assistance. While many things such as clogged arteries and organ failure had been solved through technological advancements, the brain had a finite life span. 

This life span could be prolonged through neural tech enhancements but only prolonged. There were probably ways with the assistance of Ascendants, but why would you do this when you could ascend yourself. So essentially, if you had the money and resources, most people in this situation would choose to ascend. But the secrets to Ascension were not easily obtained without paying the price. 

This price came in many forms. For the sectarians, it came in the form of joining their sect and tying your fate to the sect's goals. Amongst the megacorps, the most common shackle was a contract of employment that might last a hundred to a few thousand years. This wasn't a big deal on the outside. You are going to live forever, right? But why would businesses let go of investments? There was plenty of evidence in the planar forums that talked about Ascended suits disappearing close to the end of their contract date. She didn't know if there was any truth to this, but she suspected it was. The topic was discussed too much for there not to be some kernel of validity to it. 

The planes were savage, even in those that looked highly civilized on the outside. The maintenance of a peaceful civilization had its costs. Then you had many empires. They required a lifetime commitment to servitude to the empire. Lastly, the Ascension Academies. They had their own price in the form of tuition along with other things that Layla had yet to find out, but she knew they were there in the shadows. There was no free lunch. Freedom was tricky, and while some people were willing to sign it away for a shot at immortality, others wouldn’t see the trade as worth it. Thus, not everyone could ascend, and technological advancements were still made to prolong human life. 

“Can I ask you a few questions first? I’m sort of in the dark about somethings.” Layla enquired. She had a feeling that she might not get much information from him after he scanned her, whatever that was. 

“Absolutely, let us have a conversation cousin.” Argo smiled. He was clearly eager to communicate with another person after so long.

Layla grinned back and said, “I suppose my first question is, why do you keep calling me cousin? You also mentioned that I’m not human?”  

His face frowned, “How do you not know?” He made a move that appeared reminiscent of brushing back hair, but nothing was there. 

Smiling sheepishly, Argo said, “Oh, well, this is embarrassing. It really has been a long time. Just because you have a perfect memory doesn’t mean you are always thinking about everything. I forgot that this avatar was bald. I can see how that would make it difficult for you to make the connection.” 

Giving his head a shake, a lustrous golden mane waterfalled out from his bald scalp in the blink of an eye. The golden locks reached down to touch his shoulders before finally pausing its rapid growth. Purple lightning arched through his golden hair at random intervals. What it was striking or where it was coming from could not be seen. While Layla’s hair had shocks of deep red bolts in her hair reminiscent of lightning, if she held it just right. What she did not have was a moving storm in her hair. 

A scene of looking up at an unknown figure materialized in Layla’s mind. 

The woman was speaking, but Layla only caught the last part. Something had been broken inside her. Things that she didn’t understand she even possessed had shattered. She didn't belong here. 

“… you are too weak.” A strong, almost familiar voice said. Then the woman kicked her in the chest, and Layla flew out into the darkness.

The stoic female warrior watched impassively as Layla fell into the nothingness. Her blue hair was radiant, almost like a halo shinning bright. A deep red lightning storm was raging through the warrior's hair, and then she was gone. 

 Layla’s insides tightened at the foreign memory. That place. Those inconceivable beings. It was all impossible. They were not natural. Her mind reflexively pulled back from the memory. Her consciousness refused to recognize its contents. It immediately began to fade. The edges of it started blurring as if her mind was trying to protect her. 

When did that happen? I don’t, I uhm, I was… I, what was I thinking about again? Oh right, this guy had weird hair like me. 

She doesn’t know. She doesn’t see. She can’t fathom it. What to do, what to do! Should I let her, see it again. No, no, no, no, number. The strain, it was too much. She isn’t ready. Yes, not ready. Too weak. Much too weak. 

A familiar voice snickered in Layla’s mind startling her back to her senses. 

“You again! What did you just do to me? How the hell did you follow me here?” Layla shouted. Looking around for the owner of the voice even though she knew she wouldn’t find it.

What, you again, get out of my head, you, you... unfilial harlot! ohhhhhhh!

 The voice began to wail in her mind. 

 How did… I was… I can, no, I almost remember. It was important. Who are you? No, I know who she is, but… I—

The voice screamed in frustration before abruptly shifting to a whining tone. 

Whyyyyy does this butterfly swim so slowlyyyyyy? If I move up three knots and twist the key like sooo… all the strings will become tiny booows…

The insane voice cackled wildly before his presence disappeared from her mind. 

Argo looked at Layla strangely. His face is full of confusion and a sliver of concern. 

“I’m sorry cousin, but I’m going to need to scan you now. While I did look at your soul and mend it, I did not see any foreign influences. You clearly have one.” 

Without another word, Layla felt something hit her. It was like the pressure she felt earlier, but this wasn’t hostile. The pulse rolled over every cell of her body then disappeared. She watched Argo look at something she could not see. She had seen Atom do that before, but she didn’t know what it meant. 

Argo flicked a finger as if he was dismissing something and looked back at her with a complex expression. Layla’s heart sank as she realized that the voice's appearance may have just ruined an opportunity for her. 

“So, it’s like that,” Argo stated. His voice sounded thoughtful. 

“It does explain many things. He opened the way for you.” He rubbed his chin.

 “It is his right of course, but why would he? Interesting. You even have the qualifications to be here. This is very peculiar. You must give me a moment to think young Breezewalker.” 

Argo’s body froze. He stayed that way for a time before it began moving normally again. 

He looked at Layla with a regretful smile. “Ah, young Breezewalker. It saddens my heart to find you here now. That is all I can say about our kinship or much of anything, really. At least for information that pertains to the outside world.” 

Layla's fist clenched on her robe as she spat out a single word. 

“Atom.” 

She couldn’t hold back the frustration on her face or hide the unbridled anger that started gushing out of her. 

Argo shrugged helplessly and answered her unasked question, “Yes. Your master has forbade you any fore knowledge about anything aside from the standard explanation of the tower. While I feel that some things shouldn’t be kept from you, I cannot go against his wishes. I can’t even tell you why I can’t go against his wishes. But… But know that I understand your situation. I try my best to explain what I can.”

“That… useless bastard,” Layla muttered angrily. Her face twisted in rage. 

Argo chuckled at her words, and Layla glared at the man. This only incited the man’s humor further as he burst out into a full belly laugh, his body rocking in mirth. 

Gaining control of himself, Argo coughed as a tinge of embarrassment fell over his face, “I’m sorry. I really shouldn’t have laughed. It’s just, it has been so long since I’ve seen the uhm, appreciation of a master.”

“More like utter despisement.” She shot back. She looked away from Argo as she attempted to cool off. 

Snickering, Argo said, “It is always this way, young Breezewalker. To face adversity is to grow rich in life. A master that spoon feeds their pupil every step of the way will cripple them in the long term. They will never be able to think for themselves. Admittedly this situation is pretty extreme. To not even explain a single thing about the tower or …” 

He shook his head with a sigh. “It is bordering on negligence. You very well could have died.” 

“It wouldn’t be the first time.” Layla said dejectedly. 

Argo looked shocked, “He’s actually killed you?”

Layla shrugged noncommittally, “I don’t know, maybe. My heart has stopped beating so many times that I can’t even begin to count. But did I die?” She flipped her hand back in forth. “It’s debatable. Do you know what a Slice is?”

If Layla thought Argo looked surprised before, then she was dead wrong. The man's eyes went as round as saucers. He basically materialized to the standing position and began pacing back and forth in front of her holding his chin. 

“This. It changes everything. The use of a fracture, huh. At first, I thought he had used some ability on her to affect the feed but, with that tool the possibilities are too numerous to predict. This could work. Yes, this could definitely work. But to do something like this to a person…,” 

Layla was an afterthought to the revelation of her torture device, it seemed. Argo briefly gave her a sympathetic look before going back to his internal debate. He was clearly in his own world as he muttered to himself.

Argo paused his pacing cocking his head to the side. 

“Are you expecting company?” 

“What? Give me some context man.” Layla replied in confusion. She had no clue what Argo was talking about. 

“Never mind, I’m monitoring the situation,” he said before he continued his pacing. 

“Well, that’s not ominous,” Layla muttered. She tried to get him to explain further, but he ignored her as if he couldn’t hear her words. She gave up and sat there quietly and waited for Argo to finish.

 Snapping his fingers, he stopped his pacing and sat before Layla again. 

“We can’t waist anymore time. While time flows differently here the compression is not that strong on the first floor. You will need to leave shortly but we should have enough to get through the standard information. This is the Tower of Mazzaroth. You are currently in its inner cosmos or the heart of the tower. This also serves as the challenge area for the first fifty floors of the tower. Every tenth floor will end with a challenge.”

 “The statues you passed outside in the courtyard are the watchers. Some assisted me in building this tower for their worlds and so that earned them the right to leave behind a part of their will to judge those who would come after. Others preformed extraordinary feats while climbing and thus gain a place to do the same. You were judged harshly by the watchers because this tower was not meant for you. Actually, the iteration that it is meant for no longer exists and nor do most of the watchers.”

“The First, as he was known in our original iteration, was the greatest among the Ascended in the iteration. Once he realized that there was no saving the iteration, he and I decided that the tower had to be moved. He took this tower and moved it to a promising infant iteration.”

Layla raised her hand. She didn’t know why she did that, but she had seen students do that before in shows she had watched in the past, “What is an iteration?”

“Ah yes, I believe you now call these planes. Sorry young one. At my age, I could take a nap, and an epoch might pass. The people stay the same, but the language, understanding, and societal structure rarely do. Anyway, where was I again? Oh right. This baby plane was uninformed about the greater mysteries of anima. Honestly, it was thousands of years before the plane even developed sapient life. 

But I won’t explain it any further as your education will be filled in later as you progress at the academy.”

“Now, because this tower is in another plane for which you should most certainly not be on. Therefore I did not understand why you were here. I would be aware if our new infant plane had awoken. Atom, your master is a fluke. He was gifted an inheritance or more accurately, a legacy. Which had its own benefits and costs. Why this happened is beyond me. It really doesn’t matter and nor does it apply to you.” Argo informed.

“You brought it up,” Layla said disinterestedly. Argo huffed at her comment but quirked a smile in the end. 

Layla didn’t give one wit about Atom’s past. While she couldn’t remember her parents or what childhood was really like, she was confident of one thing. Atom’s parents did not beat him enough. She briefly daydreamed of assaulting him with a rusty eating utensil as he begged for mercy. Of course, she gave none. The mental image warmed her heart.  

Argo cleared his throat and continued his lecture, “You are here because to ascend. Families and sometimes even worlds would build a structure that would help their descendants ascend. The types and their sizes are countless as the stars. Sometimes they are giant labyrinths or colossal world trees with their massive branches dangling tiny worlds like fruits. But most commonly they are Towers thus the phrase Ascension was coined. This is one such structure.” 

Layla cut in, “But what does it actually do?”

Argo nodded, “An excellent question and my next talking point. The tower is a tool meant to assist you in ascending. It is a nursery to help potentials grow. Of course, it is much more complicated than that, but that’s the most simplistic explanation of its function. Each floor has a purpose, and sometimes several floors have a unified purpose. For instance, take the first floor. It was meant to help you reflect while your body is slowly infused with anima for the first time. You do know what anima is, right?”

Layla knew quite a bit about anima. She had to given her hobby as a tech junky slash tinkerer. It was a power source that almost everything ran on. You needed to have a good bit of practical knowledge about how it interacted with components and materials. Fortunately, it was extremely safe to work with, so it was very forgiving of mistakes, unlike ancient tech based on magnetism and electrical currents. Someone had made a breakthrough thousands of years ago, gifting the planes the ability to break away from other energy sources. 

But while Layla had a good bit of practical knowledge about anima as an energy source, she had no clue how that tied into Ascension. So, she said as much. 

Argo gave an annoyed huff, “This is just ridiculous. Sigh, no matter. What is Anima? Anima is the universal planner energy. It is the fuel for which all existence runs on. It is the glue that holds everything together. It is creation. It is destruction. It is power. The driving force that evolves all things in a universe. It is the entropy that pushes something to an end. To be an Ascendant is to be reborn in anima and from that rebirth, become it’s master.”  

“That’s uhm, that doesn’t really make a lot of sense.” Layla said in confusion. 

Argo nodded as if he expected as much, “It’s okay if you don’t understand now. I can explain it to you, but you need to experience it to truly understand. That understanding directly affects your progression as you ascend in the higher realms. You lack a nucleus, though. It will make more sense when you have one. Let’s get back to the first floor.”

Layla was unhappy with that explanation, but she didn’t say anything. He was speaking words but that didn’t mean she knew them all. While older people commonly told the young that ‘they would understand when they were older’ was quite annoying, there was a modicum of truth. Argo was essentially telling her that she lacked the experience to fully understand the explanation. She gave him a wave to continue and let the matter go for now.  

“The first floor is the first step to ascending. The infusion of anima into the body will bring about a qualitative change in you. Anima is influenced by willpower but in the beginning, it does the same for all life forms who begin to ascend. It makes you stronger. Now, the way you were progressing in the beginning is exactly how you are supposed to progress. The tranquil meadow helps clear your mind as you progress through the trial of the rings. Each ring signifying the level of infusion and a level of inner reflection.” 

“But I don’t feel any different?” Layla said as Argo paused for a moment. 

While Argo was rushing, he was excellent a striking the heart of a subject if Layla had to judge. She still found herself drifting as she stared at the man's face. Argo started speaking again, and she snapped out of her idle thoughts. She had just asked a question, after all. 

 “You wouldn’t, but that is to be expected. All changes are being suppressed by the tower currently. You have not completed the last challenge of this floor, so you have yet to gain its rewards. The first ten floors, which are about combat power, are all like this. This floor is the foundation of the tower and thus you will be rewarded with a foundation for your Ascension in return. But each floor must be completed with the power of the previous floor. This is to showcase your mastery of each power level.”

That sounded fairly logical to Layla. Beat the floor, gain the loot. Defeat the bad guy, and you are rewarded. That type of classical game mechanics was usually what she searched for in a game. While solving puzzles and intrigue were fun mechanics as well. Most of the time, if she had time to play a virtual game, it was mindless smash and loot. The less complicated, the better. Her tinkering satisfied her want to be clever and solve problems. 

So to make it through the next level, you needed to figure out how to use your new skills. A logical progression. Simple on the outside, but it was much deeper than that. For instance, if a person randomly gained superhuman strength, there was no way they could use it effectively right from the get-go. With a logical progression, you would be forced to adjust and hone your power overall, making your combat power more effective. 

Argo gestured out like a professor about to make a point, “So, again, what is a tower of Ascension? It’s a tool that was created to assist the creator’s descendants in reaching immortality. The tower specific purpose is to help break the shells of the mortal realm—,” 

Layla interrupted him, “While I somewhat understand what you’re trying to say. I want to stop you here. I know absolutely nothing about Ascension.”

Argo’s nose ticked, suppressing a snarl, and he muttered something that sounded like Atom’s name and possibly curse words in a strange tonal language. She smiled and thought that this guy was alright after all. Any smack talk about Atom was an easy way to make fast friends with her. 

“You don’t even know the fundamentals?” Argo eventually hissed out. His voice was full of indignation.

“Nope,” Layla answered.

 Argo threw up his hands in frustration, “Why are you even here if you don’t even have the slightest clue what you’re doing?” Argo said with a befuddled tone. He looked at Layla like she was an idiot. 

That statement sort of ticked Layla off, and she vented some pent-up ‘Atom frustration’ on the man, “Look, Argo. One minute you’re all ready to talk to me about things. Then you are all, ‘Your master forbade blah blah blah.’ Now you are spouting the secrets of becoming an immortal. Let us make something clear right freaking now. I do not know anything! Half a year ago, I was picking pockets and breaking into houses just to pay the rent. Atom came along, and both saved and ruined my life. He doesn’t tell me shit and treats my life like a lab animal.” 

Layla flicked her hand out and started to give her best impression of Atom, “Let’s see what this button does. Where did Layla go? I wonder if she will survive this if I throw her in this pit of vicious beasts. Layla, why are you mad at me? It was only a few hundred years of your life. What? I stole your free will too? No, I don’t remember doing that. Even if it did happen I’m sure it was for your own good. You said you wanted my help and agreed to it. It’s all in the fine print Layla. You should be more careful in the future what you agree to!”

Layla was screaming by the time she finished her rant. Argo ticked up an eyebrow in amusement. She ignored the soul-snatching being and composed herself. 

Argo spoke with a hesitant voice breaking the silence that had impregnated the room, “Soooo, start with the fundamentals?”

Layla nodded.

Looking thoughtful, Argo explained, “There are many realms of existence, levels of life if you will. Almost everything in existence is mortal and thus exists in a mortal state of being. A level of life that has a finite timeline. An existence that will eventually cave to the law of entropy. To ascend is to break the shells that bind you to the mortal realm. You can say that a person in the mortal realm is asleep, and to awaken, you must break free of the mortal shackles you are born with.”

“Now the mortal realm. This realm encompasses three shells, all of which need to be broken to step into a higher realm of existence. These shells are defined in stages. The Body, the Mind, and the Soul stage. At any of these stages you are still considered to be mortal. The next realm is the Mage realm where you physically stop aging. While the physical and metaphysical aging process have fully stopped at Mage realm, to be considered a true ascendant you need to achieve Unity with your chosen path. In the mortal realm you are building a foundation for which your path will sit upon. An ideal or what is more commonly called a path is something that sits heavy on a person. Obviously, your foundation will crumble if you do not build it correctly. Thus, the towers were created to assist in this process.”

“Okay, with that said, we get to Ascendancy. The first step in Ascendancy is the body stage, better known as the foundation. This stage is focused on seeding the nucleus which your foundation will be built around. This nucleus will convert ambient anima into a useable form for the ascender's body. Body Stage is where a person starts their journey. This is where the tower comes into play.”

“This ethereal structure is created mentally or found through meditation while searching the void. Once your find your inner space you will find one of two things. An empty aperture for which to build your structure of your foundation. Or you find a structure already built that is waiting to be seeded. Most everyone is gifted a structure through their family’s bloodline inheritance. In the older ascendant iterations there is normally a public structure. That doesn’t mean you can’t build your own. You may even decide to do so later on while traversing your path to Ascension. It comes with its own benefits. Such as tying it to your bloodline, but that is unimportant at this stage.”

“Weird,” Layla commented, but the interest could not be more evident as she stared intently at Argo. Absorbing his every word. She was like a person dying of thirst in a desert, and Argo’s words were a nice cool glass of H2O. Layla would not give up a drop. 

“The structure develops in your chest in front of the heart and between the lungs. Once the structure is forced into existence, your lungs bring in the ambient anima, and your nucleus converts the anima with your will signature, so it’s useful for your body. This converted anima then moves into the lungs and goes to the blood. The blood carries it back to the heart, where the anima is distributed to all the cells and tissues in the body. It is very similar to how the body uses oxygen.”

“Sure it does,” Layla said in jest. She had no clue how the body worked. It just did, for which she was grateful, but that’s where it ended. Those things didn’t fascinate her. But this process did sound interesting. She might need to take up a new hobby because even though she didn’t find all of what he was saying interesting, it did sound important. For instance, what would happen if she couldn’t breathe but needed this magic juju energy that seemed to be everywhere. 

“Anima strengthens the body. At the peak of the Body stage, you need to break the first of the three shells that tie you to the mortal realm. Once you do this your life span is tripled. Typically, after breaking the shell of the body stage, you can expect to live 300 to 500 years depending on how quickly you progress down the mind stage. Depending on your base, that being your body’s physical fitness, the body stage will have various levels of benefits. For example, if you are a pampered soft aristocrat, then you will still gain superhuman abilities at the peak of the body stage, but you would not be able to hold a light to those who have taken their bodies physical fitness to the peak of its capability and beyond. The starting materials matter in the mortal realm. A strong foundation supports a much larger structure.”

“Heyo, that’s awesome. It would be worth just doing the body stage alone for the lifespan bump.” Layla exclaimed.  

Argo sighed, “Yes, yes. It’s very exciting. Let us continue. The Mind stage is where you reinforce your nervous system. Your crystalline and fluid intelligence increases. This is due to your synaptic pathways being enhanced by anima. Crystalline intelligence is the ability to recall things and apply it. Its bases are rooted in education. Fluid intelligence is the ability to reason, think, and problem solve things on the fly. Essentially it is how fast you can disseminate, or problem solve in a situation you have never been in before.”

“Now, before you begin thinking this will make you smarter. It’s debatable. A supercomputer is only as smart as its user. With the enhancement of the mind the nervous system is upgraded. This causes a person to be out of balance for a time. Its not exactly a reset but you have spent your whole life seeing, feeling and moving as a mortal. While most carbon-based evolved life forms have amazing potential to adapt there is a cap. This cap or limiter is based on the laws of biophysics. For instance, most humanoids are composed of cells. These cells come together to make tissue. Tissues come together to make an organ. Organs come together to form organ systems. These systems function together to create organ-ic life or organisms. Most life functions this way. Even plants have organs. All this is possible because of cells working in a vast and complex mess of homeostasis. But did you know that a cell can only be so large before it can no longer support itself or it become so fragile that it loses structural integrity. These are hard limits set by physics and physiology.”

Layla’s eyes glazed over as Argo continued with his biological nonsense. He paused once he realized that her brain might have possibly started overheating and sighed again. 

“How can you be so intelligent yet not be fascinated by what I’m explaining to you?” Argo’s tone sounded dejected. 

 “I mean, I like what I like. I like to build and create. While I know a lot of science is connected, that doesn’t mean I want to know it or need to. Do I actually need to understand all this stuff or are you just showing me how smart you are? How about this. Why don’t you just tell me what it all means.” Layla said with a grin.