::Open your eyes already, I've brought you to your mental plane::
Diego opened his eyes and found himself within a world of azure as he stood up. Aside from himself and the woman in front of him, there was only the azure color. He was not even sure how he was standing as everything around him seemed continuous.
The woman had short, violet hair and her eyes matched as well. Her body was small, a full two heads short than Diego, but it was curvy with perfect proportions. She seemed to realize he was checking her out because she smirked while shaking her head.
::Kid, you are more than a thousand years too late, and that's only if I actually enjoyed the company of men. I think your sister will be amused once she learns you had ideas on her wife when I get you to the 'Next World'::
"Wife?"
::Yes, I am a fragment of Katalina Vasiliev, your sister-in-law::
"Then Emily is a guy?" he asked confused.
The woman wacked him on top of his head as she snapped, ::We're lesbians. What are you, a moron?::
"She was twelve when I died. It's not like she should signs of being gay," Diego said as he rubbed his head.
Her eyebrow twitched, but she changed the subject. ::Let's just get started. Create a spear::
"How?"
::This is your mental plane, imagine one::
Diego tilted his head at her words, but did as she said. He focused on Ishu's memory of the spear his father had gifted him at fifteen. The heavy golden spear with red leather wrapped around the shaft to act as the grip formed in front of him. He reached out and grabbed it, its weigh only appearing when he closed his fingers around.
::You can't learn a skill in here, but you'll be able to remember everything when you leave. I'm no expect with the spear, but I can show you how to use your power. Copy my movements::
While she talked, an identical spear appeared in her hands. She took a few steps back so that she was out of range then pointed the spear at Diego with a single hand.
::The Solar Energy that you absorb with the cultivation method of your family is primarily used to strength the body by increasing muscle density and regenerative ability. The problem is that the 'Seed of Speed' works in an almost opposite fashion, so as long as you are only practicing that cultivation, I must limit how much of the power I can give you. For now, I have two skills for you to learn: [Ten Strikes, One Thrust] and [Spinning Shield]. Watch as I demonstrate the first::
She pulled back her spear slowly then her whole body seemed to tremble before she threw out her spear. The illusion of nine spears identical to the one she was holding seemed to strike out in unison, causing a burst of wind blow across his body. In that moment, he felt like he was frozen to the spot as the ten spears were coming to claim his life. She stopped just a few centimeters away from his face with the true spear while the other nine vanished with the loss of momentum.
::How many times did I strike out?:: Katalina asked as she lowered her spear.
"Once?" he replied unsure as sweat rolled down his forehead.
::Ten times, hints the name. Why you only saw the one strike is because that was the center point of the skill, but that does not mean it has to be the center point of the strikes. Once you learn the skill, you will be able to strike twice, and when you level up the ability, instead of gaining another strike, you will gain limited control on where the second strike will hit. You will have to use your own hard work to increase the control over it as skill points can only be invested into the skill itself. Understand?::
"Yeah, I think so... Now, how do I do it?"
::Practice thrusting for now until the feeling matches Ishu's. The reason why I brought you into here is because time moves at a rate of ten to one which increasing your training time to one hundred days. You have Ishu's memories, so you can use them to speed up your own learning and, best of all, since your body is in a deep meditation right now, you will never run out of energy::
"Alright," Diego replied.
He turned, so that his was aiming at Katalina which made her chuckle. He tried to mimic the stance Ishu often used when training, but he could tell it was off, though not how. The first thrust out and he nearly stumbled as the wrong parts of his body had been relaxed which threw him off balance with the spear. Although Ishu had not used two hands for a simple thrust in years, Diego opted for it until he could get used to the feeling. Katalina secretly nodded as she watched him since he seemed to understand his lack of foundation and willingness to build it first before rushing into something too advanced.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Deep within the Hovel, Rainshower was meditating with a silvery light covering her skin while Firesand watched over her through a crystal ball with a slight smile on his face. She was in the fifth stage of the Mortal Body, but, as a woman, she absorbed Lunar Energy. She had achieved the Silver Skin during her first major breakthrough, only a step below the Blue-Silver Skin mentioned in legends. Before today, Firesand had always thought they were just legends, highly his daughter as a genius of the highest order, but then Ishu came along.
He had seen the boy a few times, but he took him more for a wastrel, enjoying what time he had left before one of his brothers got to him. It was during that first breakthrough that a Shaman's future would be decided. If he had a weak breakthrough, his body would never be able to handle the burden that mana would put on him. He, himself, had barely managed to achieve Gold Skin through his breakthrough, but it was at the very end, so it was considered a half-step rather than a true Gold Skin.
Ishu's Scarlet-Gold Skin was considered perfection and he had allowed it to bath in the Solar Energy from the midday son until dusk. Firesand could not even imagine how much mana the boy would be able to handle, and he had felt it in that initial energy wave. It was weak, barely a sliver, but it was mana all the same. He was duty bound to take in anyone with mana, but his position made it tricky.
Barru did not like magic, plain and simple, and, if not for all of the benefits it brought, Firesand knew he would be wandering the sands without a wife and daughter. But the boy! Oh, how he wanted to grab him and take him away from this uncivilized place! If he could take him as an apprentice, returning to the Konto Sect would be nothing for him, and he would even be able to bring his family along!
While Firesand was lost to his hopes and dreams, an old woman walked up with a complicated expression on her face. Like the man, her was also silver from age, but her skin was a weathered orange. She tapped on his shoulder, waking him out of his imagination.
"Moonwater, what brings you here with such a face?" Firesand asked.
"The Solar Formation, there is an anomaly that is draining our reserves," Moonwater replied.
"An anomaly? Show me," Firesand said, picking up the crystal ball from his table.
Moonwater lead him into the next room where a large formation of runes was carved into the stone with eight massive crystals stood in a large circle. Three of the crystals were shimmering with a blue-silver light while four others gave off a scarlet-gold light. The last crystal was dark, making Firesand frown. The Solar Energy stored inside the crystal had already been depleted and, although that would happen every night, it was far too early to have lost the first one.
Firesand examined the marking on the ceiling which, if you could lay a map over the oasis, would mark every cultivation chamber. Some sparkled with silver and others with gold, but what he was looking for were the brightest glows. As usual, the Bastion had the brightest glow that would no doubt belong to the Patriarch, but there was another shining rune that was far brighter than normal. He had a suspicion of who it belonged to, but he wanted to make sure.
He stepped over the rune, so that he was under it and lifted the crystal balls. The image of Ishu with Scarlet-Gold Skin, meditating, played within the orb and he could only take in a sharp breath. The boy had fallen so quickly into a deep meditation and was drawing in nearly as much energy as the Patriarch.
"What do you think, Moonwater? Will we make it through the night at this rate?" Firesand asked.
"No, and I don't understand! There were no signs of our consumption rate being this high in the past week or I would have set another crystal to Solar Energy!"
"Be at ease, I will talk to the Patriarch, and without his drain, we will manage for the night. I am sure he will understand when I explain the situation," Firesand said with a chuckle as he placed the crystal ball into a pocket in his robe.
"You can't disturb his meditation! He will not hold back his temper! You should stop this other one," Moonwater said concerned.
"Trust me, wife. The Patriarch will understand," he said as he walked to the center control talisman. He filled it with his energy and the brightest golden rune turned teal. "Patriarch, I must speak with you!"
There was a brief pause then an angry voice roared, "Firesand! How dare you interrupt my cultivation!"
"Forgive me, Patriarch, but I must! Ishu has entered a deep meditation and is drawing far more than we could have predicted as he is only second to you. We must keep a certain amount in reserve for the wards, but there is no way if both of you continue. We will fix the problem in the morning so that it won't happen again. Please understand," Firesand said.
Moonwater had paled at the sound of the Patriarch's voice. They had no place to go if they were thrown out of the Telryn Clan since Firesand was still bound to his Sect's laws. But the furious roar she was expecting never came and, instead, she heard a laugh.
"That boy is more trouble than he is worth," Barru laughed. "Fine, I'll take the night off and spend it with one of my wives. See that the problem is fixed for tomorrow night."
"Of course, Patriarch," Firesand assured then retracted his energy.
"Barru is letting a son continue to cultivate while he stops for the night," Moonwater stated in a stunned state.
"The energy wave this morning was caused by the boy and he achieved Scarlet-Gold Skin during it. He will be the heir in ten days, if his true skill matches his confidence. We may have found something worthy of our daughter in these forgotten sands," Firesand replied with a smile.