EG Book 7 Chapter 20 (Patreon)

*** AUTHOR’S NOTE ***

This week has been pretty bad. I ate something that I was allergic to on Monday, leaving me feeling like crap for a few days, then I got a polio vaccine on Friday. (Side note, there is some preliminary research that the polio vaccine helps against some of the newer variants of COVID). Left me feeling bleh for another few days, so I didn’t get anywhere near as much writing as I wanted to. Either way, y’all will get two chapters today, and at least two next week.

Hope your week went better than mine!

*** AUTHOR’S NOTE ***

The next few days moved quickly. Every morning, we spent two hours on aura training while the others gathered, pushing towards Core. Immediately afterwards, we cultivate Geist. We were lucky, in that everyone had enough Geist tempering from the Stairway of Determination to use the Enhanced Natural Geist Growth Technique, even if Lilianna and Lea could only manage a few seconds to start with. Lea especially pushed extremely hard, and would cultivate over and over again.

After Geist training, we’d eat a quick lunch, and then I worked on creating various pills. Using the books Librarian Narwan and Spirit gave me along with the Legacy, I was able to create enough Ice, Water, and Metal Affinity enhancing pills for everyone. The Fire pill recipe, unfortunately, took some ingredients I only had small amounts of, and it was complicated enough that I messed up half of it. Still, I was able to make four, giving them to Aleks, Vaya, Jamila, and Hannah, strengthening our healers at Knight Kaminski’s direction.

After a few hours of Alchemy, only occasionally interrupted by Jon causing an explosion on the other workbench, Knight Kaminski would have two of us spar. At first, we were made to fight without any techniques. It was eye-opening at how different my body was, how utterly superhuman I’d become, ever since advancing. The first time Ming and I fought, it felt like he was moving in slow motion. I exaggerate a bit, but only a bit. I easily overpowered him.

Now, with techniques we were a little closer, as I still hadn’t learned a better ability than the General Strengthening Technique. Even with techniques, though, I was faster, stronger, and tougher than he was. It was only his extensive training with his sword, compared to my less than a year experience with my trisula, that the fights were even close.

Sparring practice was followed by technique practice, with Knight Kaminski focusing on teaching everyone how to hopefully not fall off the Skysurfer. Whether by creating small walls of Ice or Stone, quick bursts of Air or Fire to throw themselves back onto the surface, or tethers of Wood and Ice to hold them down, Knight Kaminski did not want a repeat of Milenna’s fall. Jon, Vaya, Bridget, and I were directed to work on our ability to fly or run through the sky.

Vaya was able to modify her Entangling Vines Technique to create the vines from thin air, though she complained that it took nearly five times as much Aether to do so. Using those vines, she swung through the sky like Tarzan, and was able to quickly snatch me out of the sky when I faked falling. Jon worked on his (name) Technique, with the large barge of Ice slowly drifting on unseen currents. He couldn’t move it as fast as the Skysurfer, but, with support from Zimnodlot, was able to hold the technique for hours on end.

I got faster, sprinting through the sky with the smallest Air platforms I could make, keeping my Aether usage well below my natural recharge rate. This would let me fight better, longer, while staying up in the air. Knight Kaminski would also throw balls of Water at me while I was running, and I would have to create platforms as a shield. “Your modifications to Dancing Northern Wind are incredible,” she told me the first time I showed her that ability. “I was trying to make you dodge, but this is better. We will work on dodging as well. Block Water, dodge Wood.”

“Yes, ma’am,” I said with a sharp nod.

“Now, go,” she commanded, and I took off. A Wood Spike, barely holding itself together since she didn’t want to actually hurt me, shot out at me.

I created an angled platform to sidestep the attack, then threw an Air platform in the way of a Water Ball. Another splashed against my left leg, hidden behind the first, causing me to trip. It took me a second to catch myself, and then I had to immediately throw my body sideways to dodge a Spike. This continued for an hour, even as she was instructing Jamila on an Earth Technique and sending lines of Fire at Jon.

Wow, I thought, creating four Air Shields, how can she manage so many streams of Aether and still hold on a conversation. Hopefully the Geist training will help me get better at multitasking. How much is Aether changing me? Not just physically, but mentally? I’m able to remember things perfectly, I can think faster, react faster, to events happening around me.

A Wood Spike broke against my chest and I fell off the platform I’d stopped on. I laughed out loud and stopped my fall again. “I guess I’m not that different,” I mumbled to myself, “I still get easily distracted.”

Sia’s laughter echoed in my head. He and Zimnodlot were flying around, acting as scouts to watch for more Harpies or other Beasts, and he was close enough to hear my complaint.

Five days after the Harpy attack, I was sprinting straight ahead of the Skysurfer, working on straight-line speed. Gusting Northern Wind, the first modification I made to Dancing, helped enormously with that, but it had been created to help with running on the ground. So I was working on fixing and updating it, and wasn’t paying too much attention to my surroundings.

Which was why, when a shadow fell over me from above and talons the size of my torso wrapped around my chest, I was unable to react for a few seconds. Not that doing anything was possible, as the instant I was captured the aura of a Primordial froze every movement of my body. Only my heart continued beating, as even my lungs were paralyzed.

“You are different,” a rumbling chirp, like a parakeet the size of a skyscraper, sounded over me. “Why are you different?”

The aura holding me still vanished, and my Aether senses showed that we were gradually drawing closer to the Skysurfer. “Uh, in what way?” I asked.

“Your soul does not belong,” the bird said.

I looked up at it. The Primordial was only a bit larger than Sia was at his full size, probably so that it could interact with me. Instead of feathers, though, it had metal scales. Its Affinity shown through its scales, nearly blinding me with silvery light until I could force my Aether Sight to its minimal setting. “Uh,” I stammered.

The bird snorted, “You are different.”

“Yes, I am,” I said, “I got very sick, and woke up with new memories.”

“Hmm, reincarnation, interesting,” he answered. “I am Minokawa, one of the Guardians of the Sky. Ozomene reported a violation of the Oceanic Flight Agreement, and I am investigating. You interest me, so tell me why you were flying above the limit.”

“We weren’t, sir,” I answered. “We have been careful about staying at around ninety meters from the sea. A few days ago, we were attacked by harpies. Is that what the violation was?”

“I doubt that Ozomene would allow her offspring to violate the Agreement, and then have me investigate,” Minokawa said.

Sia streaked over. “It is the truth, great one,” he said. “We attempted to greet them peacefully. They attacked with no warning, no communication.”

A stream of Aether, as thick around as my thigh, shot out of the Primordial. It shimmered a pale lilac, though just looking at it made my eyes go cross eyed. The Aether paused right next to Sia’s head. A tiny feather of Flame tentatively reached out and touched the Minokawa’s. They connected, and the Minokawa’s Aether sunk into Sia’s head.

Five seconds later, the Aether tendril snapped, leaving a tiny piece with Sia. I felt his mind shudder and grow minutely stronger. “My payment,” Minokawa said. “I will investigate Ozomene’s knowledge of this attack. She will be sanctioned if she condoned it, otherwise the guilty party is dead already.” He let me go, and I quickly formed an Air platform to land on.

“Uh, sir,” I started, “May I ask you a question?”

“You already did,” he rumbled, then laughed. I could feel see roll his eyes through the bond, and I politely chuckled. “Yes, ask away.”

“Fair enough,” I said. “What does it mean to be a Guardian of the Sky? How do your people live? Do you have islands you land on elsewhere in the sea? Are there Beasts that never land?”

“Breathe, I can only answer one question at a time!” Minokawa said, his tone changing from the serious judge of our guilt to almost a kindly grandfather. “The Beasts of the Sky live on the Sky Islands. As a Guardian of the Sky, I keep the peace between tribes and protect the Guniguni Harang.”

“The Illusion Barrier?” I asked.

“You are limited to fly only below one hundred twenty meters, as your people measure them, to prevent intrusion upon our territory,” Minokawa answered. “The Guniguni Harang is a layer of Aether woven to block the senses of those below it, so that you cannot see the Sky Islands. It only works on those below Soul Expression, or Perfect Core as you would know it. One of the Guardians speaks to every person who advances to that stage, just in case they somehow missed being informed of the Sky Islands by one of their own elders.”

“Is there ever a way we could visit the Sky Islands?” I asked.

“You may request it, though I do not recommend even attempting until you express your soul,” Minokawa told me kindly. “Travel between the islands is fraught with danger.”

Drat, I thought, then nodded. “Uh, do your people ever come below the Guniguni Harang?”

“Often,” he answered, “We hunt in the sea for a portion of our meals. The Katiwala, or Overseers, guide our livestock and prey populations on the Islands, and fishing is a way of supplementing what our environment can sustain.”

“Do you have any problems between the Sky Islands? Or between the Sky Islands and a ground nation?”

“Many, but that goes beyond information I am willing to share,” Minokawa said, his tone slightly admonishing.

“Okay,” I said, hopping between feet, creating new steps each time. I’d figured out that it was more efficient to do so than to just stand still, surprisingly. Air did not like being chained to a single spot. “My nation, and several allied ones, have just declared war on the Illyrian Empire, because they have allied with Chaos. Dungeons and Chaos Beasts have been invading our world, and a calamity is coming.”

“That is grave news indeed. Does Siarczysty know of this?”

“Uh, yes,” I said, “I do not keep secrets from my Bond.”

“Siarczysty, will you allow me to examine your thoughts again?” Minokawa asked.

“Of course, Guardian,” Sia answered.

I watched the Aether form again, this time seeing tiny flecks of Geist flowing down the center of the tube. It’s Mental Aether, I think, I thought to myself. Maybe using Geist to transform the Aether, or using the Aether as a channel for the Geist to share information? He’s obviously seeing something in Sia’s mind. Maybe you can’t lie effectively when connected that way, and so they trust information exchanged in this manner more? No idea, but I’ve not been experimenting enough with what Aether can do. Too much time and thought on combat only. Unfortunately, I don’t see that changing anytime soon.

“I thank you for this warning,” Minokawa said formally. He thought for a second, then shrank down to roughly my size. “I do not have any treasures with me, but I can show you how to make a stable Air construct. Now, watch.” A streamer of Air shot out of him, this time shimmering with light as the Primordial willed it to be visible to all. Minokawa did not know that I could see Aether, and I liked it that way.

He formed a platform very similar to my own. The runes, however, weren’t still. The way the Air construct hardened kept rotating around, but the balance didn’t change. It rotated flat. “Jump onto it,” Minokawa instructed.

I hurried and obeyed. I expected the platform to be rotating, but it wasn’t. It held still, even as the runes underneath me swirled around in seemingly random patterns. “How?” I asked.

“Air does not stop moving, and when forcing it to, you weaken it. This is what is causing the additional drain over time of your technique,” he explained.

“Why am I not turning around?” I asked. “It looks like the runes for the hardening and surface are spiraling, and I thought the platform would mimic their movement?”

“The surface is not moving, only its support is,” Minokawa answered. “These two runes define the surface, and their relative position never changes.” Two runes pulsed.

Light and Darkness, why did I never think of that! That’s amazing, I thought. “Thank you,” I said. With a thought, I created the runes for Dancing Northern Wind’s Air platform, then started them spinning. After a few seconds, I released my control on most of them, with only two, very similar to the ones Minokawa was using, held in a sort of stasis, spinning around each other. I jumped over to it, and stood. The Aether cost was consistent, a tiny bit higher than one without moving runes, but it didn’t change. “This will be incredibly helpful.”

“Now will yourself forward,” Minokawa said. “You control your Aether, so move it.”

I reached out mentally to the construct I’d built, and pushed it sideways like I would if I wanted to create the platform at the end of my next step. It moved, the Aether drain tripling instantly, but it moved. I’m flying, “I’m flying!” I shouted, zooming around. With some minor movement of the runes and technique, I coated my legs and torso, then leaned forward and shot towards the Skysurfer.

Jon held his hand out, and I slapped him a high-five as I flew past him. “Knight Aiden, is everything safe?” Knight Kaminski yelled out, flying in front of me.

I stopped moving and nodded. “Yes, ma’am,” I said. “The Primordial is named Minokawa, and is a Guardian of the Sky. He was told that we violated the agreement, and came to investigate.”

“The one who reported the violation must not have known of Siarczysty’s presence,” Minokawa said, appearing next to us. “As his people and my own share a bond, and we can speak experiences to each other. Thus I was able to confirm your version of the events that unfolded. I will bring this to the other Guardians, and we will uncover what truly occurred. Be safe, and know that I will be watching for your advancement, Bond Aiden.” He shot away and grew to utterly enormous proportions before blurring upward and vanishing into the sky.

“I’m going to practice flying some more,” I said with a grin.

Knight Kaminski nodded, then hit me in the face with a ball of Water. “Yes, you obviously need it.” The smile in her voice made me laugh, and I blazed forward to continue my training.