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Plans

We got out of the city, arriving early at our meeting spot. A campsite with a large rock embedded into the ground and a nearby river. The fireplace was cold to the touch but layered with ashes that hadn't been swept away yet.

"You got any flint on you?" She asked, dropping the stack of wood in her arms. "I lost mine along with my knife."

"Why would you want flint?"

"To throw it at your dull head," she scoffed, "to start a fire, of course. I'm freezing."

"Freezing?" The temperature of the night was pleasant. I got closer to her and noticed how much she was shivering. "...You're not cold, Nysha. Don't worry, we're safe now. Cultivators like him have much better things to do than to bother with us," I sat against the rock, patting the ground next to me. She was unable to decide between me and the stack of wood. Eventually, she sighed in defeat, admitting to herself I was right.

"A cultivator..." Nysha was sweating as if she had a fever, her body trying to shake off the imprint of fear that man had left behind. "You told me so. I believe you. I know it, damn it, but..."

"It will fade," I said, trying to sound reassuring, but her response was weak.

"So what do you plan to do next?" I tried distracting her, instead. It was the only cure I knew of. There were many other questions I had on my mind, but I'd have to save them for later. "Now that we've got all these pellets."

"Return home," she whispered.

"Karza, then? I've never been to Dyrakiel before. What is it like? They say the wind is never-ending, following you like a dear companion. Always by your side, guarding you."

"And tearing those to shreds that have earned its ire," her voice grew even fainter. I certainly had a knack for cheering people up.

"You said home," I continued, hoping not to make it worse again, "you can't return without pellets?"

"...Not until I've become a cultivator of this land."

"Surely you must have reached more than two hundred pellets even before today."

"I'm not settling for anything less than a natural spirit essence," she said, some of her strength returning to her voice. "I won't leave anything up to chance in a stupid trial. I will become a Wind... True cultivator."

If she could afford it, that would make sense. The Mortal Trial was a chance to compete over random essences. There might not even be a true essence present in your particular trial.

"You plan on joining a sect, then?" It would be hard to find proper guidance otherwise. "Or get adopted by a martial family?"

"The former, if possible, on the clause that it isn't for life," she pursed her lips, "honestly, I haven't put much thought into it yet, since I figured that day was still a long way off. Now that it's already here, I admit, I'm a little lost on the details. I'll hire an advisor from the guild, see what he has to say on where I should go. From thereon, it will be up to the winds where I end up."

"I can offer you some advice if you want."

"You?" She stopped slouching and looked at me," I've been meaning to ask, but..." There was a pause as she ruffled her hair. "Ah, to hell with it. You don't have to answer me, but I will ask. Who are you? You taught us martial arts, fought the duke and survived, and... Didn't you talk? With Him? You don't seem... normal... Whatever that means. Great, now I can't even talk sense anymore. Nothing to ruffle your feathers more than realizing your own insignificance, am I right?"

Her weak laughter shook off some more of her apprehension. She hid her eyes afterward, ashamed of her inquiry. It was her rule to not stick your nose in others' business. Nysha had never told me much about herself either.

"I'm..." Do I lie? Again? I have to. I couldn't bring myself to tell her my name. "I was a cultivator. But I lost my foundation, so I'm trying to start over again. I've learned a lot of things from my previous time, which is why I can offer advice. If you're willing to listen that is. I warn you, it might not be what you want to hear."

"Oh?" Her head perked up. "You've got me intrigued. How can I say no?

"Are you sure?" She nodded.

"The wind doesn't suit you."

Her reaction, as I'd expected, wasn't a happy one.

"I've studied all of you closely," she raised an eyebrow. "I tell you the wind doesn't suit you because your body wasn't made for it. You could restructure it with a beast-essence attuned to the wind, but I'd advise against it for several reasons. If you can afford a true essence, there's no reason not to use one. The element you need to seek out is fire. Best case, you find a petal from the Fiery Autumn Flower plucked near a volcano. Look for it in Bankei, you can save some pellets on the transportation and storage fee. The more life-years the better, a general rule that you should remember. It would suit your heritage the most. The second best would be a quill from any false-bird, born of a spring of natural fire essence. With this one comes the experience of taming the wind to your will. They're more common in Guangen, near the firelakes, so I'd start looking there.

"You should buy the essence before you join a sect, since they might not provide you with the most beneficial essence for you. You'll always be at a disadvantage compared to others if you're unwilling to sign a lifelong bond with them. Their resources are vast but not unlimited, so treatment can be discriminatory. Hide your riches and don't reveal your hand, but I doubt you need me telling you that. If you can spare the funds, build your foundation first with a supervisor from the Guild, and then join the sect on better terms."

"But why fire?" She sounded almost pleading. "Why? Who decides that?"

"The heavens," I grimaced at the sky. "It's your birthright. The elements flow through for the cultivator, or to be exact, through everything in existence. Imagine your body like a sieve with each element seeping through it better or worse than the other. Some bodies aren't made for this altogether, they block the flow of feral Qi too much. In your case, we can say your body is open. It's a place where fire thrives, enhanced even, which gives you less of a reason to use a beast-essence if you can avoid it. To keep it simple, you've got talent in that one aspect. You shouldn't discard it for no good reason."

"Doesn't fire need the wind?" She asked with some hope. "You said a quill tames the wind... or something. Doesn't that mean...?"

"It's the opposite of what you think," I shook my head, understanding her thought process. "Wind and fire hate each other. Fire consumes the wind, it feeds on essential parts of it, whereas the wind tries to extinguish the flame. The two are in constant conflict. It isn't cooperation, as it might appear on the surface, but a fierce war. Fire, by its nature, is more difficult to combine with the other elements.

"Don't worry, as your cultivation thrives, you'll be less bound by the natural limitations, and I'm sure there are many ways of Qi and cultivation I don't know of. The four elements don't create the whole picture. There might be a lot of things I'm overlooking, but you have to start somewhere, which is why it's best to start in your element. If you persevere, one day, you'll be able to beckon the wind as well, whether it is willing or not."

I refrained from telling her the chances of making it to that stage.

"Willing or not," she sighed, "it sounds blasphemous..."

"Cultivators defy the heavens, I'm sure you've heard of that one before," I thought before adding, "but it's not blasphemous, depending on how you see it. The gods, as far as I'm aware, stand between the immortal and the heavens. The final choice is up to you, of course, I won't force you to do anything. No one will. These are merely the ramblings of a boy who tries to imitate his betters."

"No, I believe you, Shin," she gave off an air of reluctance, but there was acceptance as she mumbled under her breath. "You're not the first to tell me this. I would have thrown less of a fit if those senile, old raisins had deigned to explain it to me."

"Listen to your elders and never question them," I chuckled. "I guess, it's the same everywhere."

"What do you think happened to them?" Nysha asked after a moment of silence. Her shivering had mostly subsided. "Those rebels who were with Khan Sen?"

"Let go," I said and she looked at me in disbelief. "I overheard some rumors when we left the city. Khan Sen is dead and some men fell in battle on both sides. The rest was pardoned for being led astray by a lunatic. The stories differed in their reasoning, but the end result was the same in each one. I'm sure it was that cursed Huo Lan who did something again. What is going through his head I wonder?"

"That's..." She closed her eyes, frowning hard, "naive. Dangerously so."

"I agree," the voice lurking within the shadows made us jump before we recognized its familiarity.

"Grey!" He walked out of the bushes, carrying two chests, tugged underneath his arms.

"And us!" The twins squealed, sprinting towards us, followed by Rael.

"You're early," Nysha welcomed them with a smile and big hugs.

"I was about to say the same," Rael responded with relief. "I'm glad to see you two are fine. Did it go well?"

"In certain ways," Nysha twirled the spatial pouch around her finger. The twins lunged after it, trying to steal it away from her. It was great to see that Ren had overcome his apprehension, but it might have been the darkness that helped him with that.

Rael and I took some time to exchange experiences. Their group had stayed clear of the events, but they knew most of what needed to be said. Khan Sen had been heard all over the city, even in the underground. I kept my story short, leaving out our encounter with the cultivator and the sealed gate we'd found. We basically knew nothing about either anyway.

"What do you mean by naive, Nysha?" Ren asked her when he collapsed to the ground in exhaustion, failing to reach her pouch. She grew silent as we waited for her answer.

"To extinguish a fire," she said, her voice solemn, "don't forget to kill its cinders."

The meaning wasn't lost on us, and the twins both seemed to understand well enough.

"But that's..." Rin mumbled, her face studying her feet, "...Cruel," Ren finished for his sister. Nysha bit her lip, scowling. Did she regret saying that?

"I know of a similar saying," I spoke up and their heads twirled to me with childish hope. "The greatest harvest spoils from a single foul corn."

Their faces sunk further into the dark night.

"I think no matter his decision," Rael stepped in, "the result would have been the same. Whether he killed the rebels or not, therefore, there was some reason for his mercy. We'll yet see how it all unfolds."

It was a difficult topic for the children, but the rest of us had an unspoken consent on how to handle it. It was better to have them confront that unpleasant reality. To know of what many would have considered the correct option. Nip in the bud before it blossoms. Whether it truly was, they would have to decide for themselves one day. They too were a part of this group, trying to become cultivators, and they weren't just along for the ride. If they continued down this path, they could not shy away from death. The reality of their own mortality, as well as that of others. Young age might be an excuse to avoid the topic, but only if they could be sheltered from it. None of us could guarantee that.

"Enough about that," Nysha clapped her hands. "Aren't you forgetting about the most important thing?" A dim flash and the ground was littered with crystals. "I got some presents for you!"