Gust accepted Ephraim’s offer, allowing the man to pull him to his feet. He nodded and repositioned his glasses. “What… what was that?” His eyes laid on the man’s abdomen, where the strange force appeared to originate.

There didn’t appear to be anything hidden in his robes. Gust couldn’t figure out how the trick worked. He couldn’t even begin to explain how gravity itself seemed to increase for everyone except the old man.

Ephraim placed his hands on Gust’s shoulders. “What you felt was the weight of my mana source. My cultivation base, as some call it. It is only of medium quality, but something tells me you won’t hold that against me. It emits a spiritual pressure which I usually keep at bay, but you gave me no other choice.”

Although Gust understood the man’s words, what Ephraim was trying to explain went right over the young man’s head. The words cultivation base and spiritual pressure rung between his ears, not connecting to anything that made sense.

“But… how did you…” Gust pointed toward the two recovering young men, then back at Ephraim while he struggled to form a question.

After a moment of thought, the elder said, “Let’s back up a bit. What do you know of spiritual energy?”

Gust took a deep breath and said the first thing that came to mind. His father had mentioned something like that years ago, albeit briefly. “You mean qi?“

“Spiritual energy is not qi,” Ephraim snapped, which confused Gust but no more than he already was. The elder’s calmed himself quickly. “Qi is a twisted bastardization of reality. Mana, or spiritual energy, is that which allows the forces of heaven and earth to operate. Hence the increased gravity you felt moments ago. The mana emanating from my source increases the potency of natural forces. You see?”

If Gust hadn’t already been determined to get home, he may have put more effort into understanding those words. As a matter of fact, he did not see what Ephraim was saying at all, but he nodded anyway. Gust just wanted the conversation to end so he could figure out how to get home.

Ephraim nodded, though his eyes tightened. “Now, as for the Swordsman,” he said. “If you aren’t his murderer, then I can only assume you were his student, yes?”

Gust’s teeth clenched as he searched for an explanation. “He, uh, knew his time was running out, so he gave me the coin and sent me here. We didn’t spend much time together, though.” At least that part was true.

Ephraim nodded and shrugged. “Ah, well we know he had some strange notions toward cultivation and hope he didn’t fill your head with too much nonsense. What did you know about spiritual energy before you met him?”

“Well, nothing. Not many Americans really believe in qi,” Gust said carefully, worried about offending the man. Ephraim only snorted as if the word itself was nonsense. “It’s important to other cultures, though. I think. I’ve heard of mana too, but not as spiritual energy. It just… powers spells and stuff. In games and stories, that is,” he added, since he could tell these robed people were likely to take his every word seriously.

“Interesting. Your world is inert, and yet these words exist. Why? Are you sure there are no mages in your world? No stories of immortals or cultivators? There may be a number of different words for them, so think hard.”

Gust reared back. After Ephraim’s demonstration, he was almost ready to believe what he heard, but it was going a little too far. Magic was a fun idea, but Gust gave up on its existence years ago. “Immortals? Not really, no. There are plenty of old myths about magic or other powers, but nothing real. Besides, you’re not exactly immortal either. I mean, why else would I be here?” Gust crossed his arms after laying down what he supposed was a trump card.

Ephraim chuckled. “A misunderstanding. We say immortal to mean, ‘more than mortal,’ not, ‘immune to death.’ Although that is the goal, it is nigh unachievable.”

“Nothing you say makes sense.”

The man spread his hands and grinned. “The goal of our lives is to slowly make sense of it all. You are just at the beginning. Simply put: mana is spiritual energy. You begin by taking it into your body and forming pathways through which it will flow.”

Gust sighed. “Still not making any sense,” he thought.

So, he changed the subject. “You said I can’t go back. Why? I have a family, you know. People who will miss me. What happens when the police search this forest?”

Ephraim pointed to Gust’s left hand, which held the sword coin, and outstretched his own. “May I?” Gust placed the coin in the man’s palm and Ephraim held it up between them. “Unless they have this, or something infused with mana like it, no one will ever find us. They’ll walk through those woods just like you did on any other day. I am sorry Augustus, but it is our sect’s most sacred duty to guard that gateway. We cannot allow you to enter it before we know you are ready, but we will offer you a place in our sect so that you may become so. As an honorary student you’ll work and train-”

“What?” Gust cried, outraged. “Oh, you’ll hold me hostage, but it’s alright because you’re giving me a job? That’s bullshit!”

Oba’s head had been bowed respectfully, but he sprung forward upon hearing those words. “You ungrateful idiot! Do you have any idea what you’ve been offered? Most Sorcerers would have killed a Demon like you outright!”

“Oba! He does not know.” Ephraim stared the young man down until he backed off. His calm voice was a contrast to the young man’s outburst. When he returned his gaze to Gust, he sighed. “What the boy says is, however, true. You are lucky to find yourself here, whether you know it or not. Our world is not like yours, Augustus. We are born with small, but vital differences. You will only survive if you learn to cultivate, but if you do, you may be more powerful than any of us. You have only two choices.” Gust perked up a bit. “Train. Or wither away as so many before you.”

That took the wind out of his sails. “So many? I thought you said people couldn’t come here without one of those mana items?”

“Generally, yes, but extreme circumstances are known to line up and produce unexpected results.”

Gust shook his head again. Everything he heard just made him more confused. “And what exactly happened to all those people?”

“As I said, without the ability to live alongside mana, they withered away far more often than not. Demons are known to have great talent, but they must unlock it on their own. It seems there are… cultural differences between our worlds which make cultivation difficult for your people.”

Gust deflated. He thought of his family. His mother would get home from work and realize her son was missing. His sister would be waiting to show him her latest work. The girl’s grotesque, gothic art style was always strange, but he couldn’t deny her abilities. She would be stuck with Jason all the time now that Gust wasn’t around. Jason… was a dick, but he might grow out of it eventually. Gust wanted to be there to see it.

“No one needs to know I was ever here,” he offered, pleading.

“We don’t have a choice. You can go back when you’re strong enough,” Ephraim replied plainly.

“And how long will that take?”

Ephraim patted him on the shoulder. “That will depend upon you. I think you may find yourself on a better path than most, however.” He stepped forward and pulled the door open effortlessly. “Oba and Theo will show you your new home and explain the basics. Then tomorrow, head to the chore house to be assigned your responsibilities and classes.” With a slight bow, he offered a smile and waved the other boys over. After some whispered instructions, the three young men left together.

Not a minute later, Gust felt something hard in his pocket. He reached down and pulled out his father’s golden coin, though he realized Ephraim never handed it back. Gust turned it over in his hands and glanced back at the elder, only for the man to be standing just a foot away. When Gust jumped in sudden shock, the man smiled.

He leaned in and tapped the coin. “It would seem you are its new owner. You will want to keep that coin on you at all times, Augustus. Actually, you’ll find you don’t have any choice in the matter. We’ll talk more about the man who gave you this, and what it means, when we are more certain of your fate.”

Ephraim waved him off with a tight smile and Gust left feeling conflicted. The man seemed kind, and yet Gust was a hostage. These people seemed to take their rules deadly seriously, but Gust still wanted to go home. He decided to keep playing along and sneak out that night.

As for the interesting display Ephraim put on, Gust chalked it up to illusion. He had been to magic shows before and seen plenty of things he couldn’t understand. That didn’t mean what he saw or felt was real magic, it just meant he didn’t see the trick behind it.