Liv stared at the fallen tree in wonder. She could now help people like those heroes of old had! Though I'm not nearly as strong, Liv mused, looking at her hands. Those old heroes had been able to destroy mountains with a casual thought, burn armies in hellfire if they wished. However, before she could achieve fame and glory, Liv had to avoid whoever was following her. Apparently, as soon as she started cultivating, a protection her father placed on her would break. Nothing had seemed to happen, but Liv trusted her parents. She walked back into the house, watching magic slowly pool in her. It was fascinating.

Liv thought about her next course of action, pulling out an atlas from her small collection of books. Flipping through the pages, she thought about which one of the locations would be the best place to go. She didn't want to go anywhere cold, so a lot of nearby areas were crossed off. Anywhere too hot was also a no go. Suddenly, a voice came from outside. "Hey, Bob, this is where the Master says she is, right? It looks abandoned," someone spoke slowly, as if their voice was showing the world the idiocy of their mind.

"Shut up, Jeff! You've probably alerted her!," another man, presumably Bob, replied in a hoarse, very audible whisper.

Bob's reply was not likely something he would have found within a satisfactory level of noise. "But you're speaking? Why can't I speak?"

Liv, heart pounding, slowly got up. Putting down her atlas, she slowly crept down the stairs, ducking back up to the second floor when the men opened the door, making the entire house shudder. Liv peeked at them through a small hole in the wooden floor.

They walked inside, one of them appearing to be a professional while the other one bumbled into every object he found. "Why would they send us Whisperers after her if she's so important? Why not somebody stronger?," Jeff asked, falling into a dusty table. His voice was loud enough to wake the dead.

Jeff spoke again. "Shut up, Bob. We're here, because if anyone stronger left, Boss would have to give the rest of the Council an excuse so they don't go after her."

Bob shrugged. "I don't... get it." he said, speaking slowly and carefully, stopping his movement to ponder the fact.

Jeff didn't deign to reply, walking towards the stairs.

Liv asked a spirit to prepare a much smaller wind blade, which she once again filled with energy. Grabbing the arc as if it was a physical object, Liv pointed it down the stairs. There, she waited. Jeff walked up the first few steps, his head turned to the side to watch Bob. Then he looked up at the coming wind blade and barely had time for his eyes to widen before the sneak attack cut through his neck. Jeff fell down the stairs, blood spilling out from his neck. Then Bob ran over, coincidentially with his back towards the stairs. "Jeff? You idiot, you died. I'm officially smarter than you now!," Bob cried, not even seeing the second wind blade, infused with the last of Liv's energy.

As Bob collapsed, the tiny wind blade having been just enough to cut through his spine, Liv panted, standing at the top of the stairs. Her opponents hadn't even had time to attack. She thought about their deaths, thinking about whether she could have prevented them. Then Liv dismissed her worries. There would always be people she would have to kill, and there wouldn't be time to think about all of their deaths. Some people had to be killed. In fights, you couldn't hold back.

Liv turned away to go back to her atlas, but then the pain hit. Emanating from her energy pool, power pulsed in a circular pattern, expanding her energy pool. Liv struggled to the bed just before the expansion exponentially increased, the small energy pool she had used to have now much bigger. This was good. It would help set her foundations for the next stages. Liv remembered the stories she had read, and in none of them did they say that expanding your pool was this painful. However, they also said that the energy pool would only expand if the spirits accepted you, and gave you power. Fading from the pain, Liv fell into unconsciousness, both hating and thanking the spirits at the same time.

`Liv woke up, the sun streaming through the windows. Dragging herself out of bed, Liv looked out the window. The sun shone directly above. High noon! She hadn't slept for much of the last night, so that was expected, but she had work to do today. Liv grabbed her atlas, quickly deciding on a destination, nodding to herself. Then she rubbed her hands together. One more stealing trip and she would never need to do so again.

Liv walked through the market, hands flashing with invisible speed to grab things from stalls as she passed by, none spotting her deeds. Soon, Liv finished, getting back to her hideout with enough provisions to last the walk, traveling clothes, and a sword that had caught her fancy from a random weapons store.

Quickly, she put all the food and water in a rucksack she had also stolen, climbing back into bed one last time, feeling a sense of safety there and knowing nothing would bother her, at least for this night. As she slept, unbeknownst to her, a decayed truth fluttered in the air, the symbols sputtering and slowly dissolving, ready to give up when the day came.

The memories were back again. Liv saw herself with her parents, reaching out to spirits, playing with them... The memory frayed, ending immediately. Liv pushed harder. She wanted to know!

The dream fractured and Liv woke.

She lay in bed in the house, the sun peeking through her window. Groaning, Liv sat up, grabbing her rucksack. Throwing her previous clothes back on the bed, Liv wore the traveling set she had bought and pulled the rucksack over her shoulder. As a final touch, she buckled the sword onto her hip and walked out of the house.

Liv did not look back as she set off on the road to Maanterin, the city known in ages gone as The Gate of Wind.

Glowing words shone in the house she had just vacated, disappearing and ridding Liv of their protection. Part of the truth had been fulfilled, and so that part was now gone.