(A/N: Please leave a comment or review so that others will read and I can tell if y'all like the story. Thanks for reading!)
Halfway across the world, in the land Grumund, on the Bolayri continent, Karrick was currently kneeling before his father, the Chief of the Karsslak Tribe while his family, the Elders and other important tribe members stood around watching. Karrick soon realized that this wasn't some simple talk with his father to where he could just apologize and things get swept under the rug.
He was on a trial, and the sneers and vicious grins he received from the Elders who hated him told him that things weren't looking to good for him. Karrick gnashed his teeth as he thought of the black lion Beastian that led to this predicament.
Ever since the moment he chased Rey into that forest, Karrick's life has been hell. He was the commander of an important division during the invasion of Pruvia, and his division was meant to blitz through the weak soldiers and take out the young 3rd prince, Mason, who was the leader of the Pruvian defenders.
But, that whole plan fell apart with Karrick, the commander, not being there to lead his men and battle Mason, who proved to be far more formidable than they expected for a young prince in his first real battle. Not only that, the Pruvian Grandmaster, Gaven Tran, showed up randomly and wiped out a large chunk of the invading army's force before suddenly leaving without any warning.
When he came back after hearing the horn to retreat, the Domiko army was in complete disarray, as many soldiers scrambled to get back to their ships before they were slaughtered, Karrick as well. Many had seen Karrick run off to chase Rey into the woods and knew of his infamous reputation as the, 'Great Ravager Karrick', so they already knew what he left the war to do. When his father heard about what he had done, he was furious, and banned Karrick from seeing him until they returned to their lands. That was nearly a week ago.
This was the first time Karrick had seen his father or be without a guard detail watching his every move for nearly a week. Karrick was embarrassed and ashamed. He was the son to the great, Chief Doorun Karsslak, and he was used to everyone fearing him his whole life and treating him with respect. He was next in line to become the next Chief, now the tribe Elders were begging his father to reconsider, saying that his brother or estranged sister would be far better choices.
Rage filled his heart, but he dared not show even a sliver of displeasure in front of his father, the only man who has ever made him feel fear.
"Karrick, you DAMNED IDIOT! I have been more than lenient to your different...tastes, but now you have brought shame to not only you or me, but the whole fucking Empire! Even now, the Emperor sends messengers inquiring on what went wrong and demanding we make things right!" Doorun said as he slammed his fist on the arm of his throne made out of various bones.
Chief Doorun was an intimidating man, standing at nearly 11' feet tall, massive bulky muscles, long black hair that had streaks of gray running through it, and a gnarly scare going across his face that made the many that he had on his body look like paper cuts. It wasn't a mystery why many were completely frightened by such a monstrous Orc. Even his own son.
Karrick shook slightly at the sound of his father's booming voice and explosive aura, flashes of his father brutally beating him for him for even the slightest mistake resurfacing in his mind, inducing the fear he's had since childhood. He could only hang his head down low and pray that the beating won't be too vicious this time around, as anger for his weakness only grew.
"The other tribe leaders are even in talks of raiding us now to make up for the great losses they took. Us, the Karsslak Tribe being fucking raided?! Over my fucking grave!" Doorun bellowed as a massive spiked club suddenly appeared in his hand, as he swung the club at Karrick's face, sending him sprawling.
The others of the court, even the Elders winced as they watched Doorun hit Karrick again and again, Karrick's blood was now splattered over the many fur rugs, war flags, and mounted heads that covered the span of the throne room. Many Orcs hated and feared Karrick, but even their stomachs were starting to turn by the gruesome display that was starting to feel like a borderline execution.
Some of the braver souls were even about to step in and stop the beating but when they saw Doorun's eyes flashing red and felt the oppressive aura he gave off, they had second thoughts.
Finally, right when they feared that they would watch Doorun brutally killing his own son right in court, he suddenly stopped, flipped his long, bloody hair from out of his face, then walked to sit on his throne like nothing happened.
"Now, you feel part of the pain that I must endure from knowing that I, the Great Doorun, am your father," Doorun said in a cold, hard tone that made many's blood run cold. That one line may have been more brutal than the entire beating.
Karrick was greatly wounded by these words. Though he was a psychopath and hated that his father beat him, he still loved his father and wanted nothing more than for his father to be proud of him. So, hearing that his father felt pained just from birthing him was a great blow.
"But, there may still be hope for you, Karrick. It turns out, that the faith in the Emperor, which was already shaky, has fallen with this last failure. So, many of the leaders of the countries are having talks of rebelling against the Empire and becoming their own nation's again. If this happens, the Grumund Coalition is said to be formed again and there will be a vote and then battle to determine who will become the Great Chief. The winner will naturally be me, but my successor is not so certain." Doorun said, fixing Karrick with a heavy look.
"You brought great shame to our tribe all over a little lion Beastian at the Commoner level. So, your task is to go back to Pruvia, capture one town with the aid of the men I assign you, as well as bring me back this little lion. I want to see you skin this lion in front of me and mount it on your wall. Until then, you are banished from these lands, and that lion will forever be known as, Karrick's Shame. Begone." Doorun said with a wave of his hand.
Karrick, barely consciousness on the floor felt himself being dragged away as many complicated emotions burned inside of him. But, the one that burned the brightest was determination. He swore on his life and soul that no matter what, he would have his revenge on that little black lion and reclaim his honor and rightful place as the successor to the throne.
* * * * * * *
Hours before Rory woke up to find Rey's letter, he was deep in the woods around Harris's farm. He wanted to go to Central Harrend, maybe see Kairen one last time before he left on a carriage to a different town, but Jinbe advised against it. Not only would that make leaving Harrend even harder, but there was a chance that a Vanguardian loyalist could spot him and report his location.
Jinbe informed him that thanks to getting access to the abandoned Shinigami Sect Safehouse, he was able to teleport there, but he had to go deep into the forest or Harris might sense the magical fluctuations.
Rey didn't understand a bit of what Jinbe was talking about, but he listened anyway. He was not only very curious about this abandoned Safehouse, but he was greatly excited to actually teleport somewhere. Every nerd has dreamed of a chance to teleport somewhere, and now he would get that chance.
Coming to a stop and bracing his hands on his knees, as he had been running for a while now, Rey hoped that he was far enough now. And Jinbe just confirmed his hopes.
'Okay, Young One, this should be far enough. Now, all you have to do to transport yourself to the abandoned Safehouse is to first tap into your mana pool, and then recite this Incantation. Lacribbo!' Jinbe said which made Rey excited. This was just like a spell from that movie about the magical academy!
Closing his eyes, Rey did his best to focus on his dormant mana. He had been practicing to manipulate his mana for a few days now and hadn't had too much progress, at least until he broke through to the Novice stage.
Ever since then, he had been sensing every aura he passed without even trying. It was like he had become a living radar, but Jinbe said they call people with that ability, Sensors. They typically make the best hunters and trackers, but those jobs didn't seem too appealing to Rey.
Sensing his own mana pool inside of himself, Rey tried "tapping into it" like Jinbe told him, and Rey was pleasantly surprised that he managed to figure it out quickly. Feeling his own magic was a totally euphoric experience that he would never get bored of, as it was everything he hoped it would be and more. Containing himself, as he had something to do, Rey channeled his mana as he opened his eyes, which now were glowing a deep green.
"Lacribbo!" Rey practically shouted as he felt his mana swirling as the wind around him began swirling strongly as well. A bright green light flashed suddenly, forcing Rey to shield his eyes. When he was finally able to open his eyes again, he was no longer in that dark, damp forest near Harris's farm. Rey was now standing at the edge of what looked to be a huge, murky lake covered in a heavy fog, with an ancient ruin far in the distance.
As he looked at his surroundings, he realized that everything is covered in a deep mist. But, even with the heavy mist obscuring his vision, Rey could still notice the impossible environment around him that finally hit home that he was on a truly magical world. The dense forest surrounding the large lake was full of massive trees covered in balls of fluffy blue bark, while the canopy on top of the trees were filled with cloud-like leaves that seems to barely keep their shape.
Focusing on the ground, looking past the unruly and overgrown blue grass and foliage, in place of where dirt should be, was a solid cloud instead. Reaching down and digging into it with the help of his claws, the cloud dirt was slightly damp to the touch, but was otherwise solid and malleable with the consistency of light mud.
It was a very surreal experience, and threw Rey's senses for a loop, as everything he knew about reality was being tested. Seeing different races was somewhat easy to comprehend, but this was on a whole new level.
'Jinbe.... What is this?' Rey thought as he continued to look around in stunned silence. It was like he had stepped into a dream world.
'I knew you'd be stunned, so I didn't want to ruin the surprise by telling you about it,' Jibe said in a mirthful tone, showing that he was still playful despite his old age.
'This, Young One, is the ruins of the Shinigami Sky Keep. It was once thought to become an important location for the sect, but certain issues arose that kept that from happening and we eventually forgot about the location. Even I have only been here a few times in my early years, but the majestic beauty it possessed then always kept this place in my heart and mind.' Jinbe said in a wistful tone.
'Yeah, but that doesn't explain what exactly I'm looking at.. it's really like a dream world.' Rey said as he ran his paw through the unkempt lake.
'Sky Keep is on the continent of Skylund, which is a massive, stationary, floating cloud in the sky. Naturally, the ground itself is made up of the solid cloud which forms this continent. Though is may seem strange and unsettling, there is no need to be cautious of it, as it is just as solid as the earth on any other continent. Now, Reishi Lake on the other hand, is troubling.' Jinbe said in a complex tone as Rey snatched his paw from the water.
'Of course. There's no way this was going to be simple, so I can just move in and start training. Come on and give me the bad news.' Rey said in a defeated tone as he wiped his paw on his grey robe. He planned to get rid of it soon, so he didn't mind dirtying it up.
'It's not good to be pessimistic all the time, Young One, but in this case I suppose it's warranted. Though this was built before my time, I was told that this location was chosen for the same reason any of the Shinigami compounds were, it has a natural Spirit Vein, which pumps out a pure form of spirit energy many knows as Chi.' Jinbe explained, nearly making Rey's mouth drop.
Not only was Chi mentioned a lot in the anime he used to watch, he vividly remembered Harris instructing him on Chi just the other day. Thanks to his memory improving after being healed by Jory, memories of powerful spells and abilities from different anime, that were being fueled by Chi filled his mind.
Now, Jinbe was telling him that this place supposedly had a Spirit Vein which pumped out a pure form of this Chi. Right away, Rey could tell that whole wars could be fought over a location like this, and couldn't believe that he had such a valuable place to himself.
'As I'm sure you can already imagine, such a place will be immeasurably valuable to anyone, as even those with poor cultivation skills can eventually find improvement if the absorb some of the pure Chi this place used to possess. But, now it seems after so many years of neglect, the Spirit Vein has become corrupted, and the pure Chi that use to fill the very air is no more. But, there is hope,' Jinbe said, just before Rey was about to have his spirit crushed.
'It will require some time and be quite the undertaking considering our current resources, but the Spirit Vein can be cleansed. But, it will require you to become a Master at Inscription before you can fully Cleanse the Spirit Vein. Remember, Young One. Me injecting my knowledge into you was in no way a shortcut. It's like being given a book will all of the answers. You will still have to sort through that knowledge and train in it in order to truly grasp it.' Jinbe said, reminding Rey of just how much work was ahead of him.
Still, knowing that there was a laid out route for him to acquire a powerful resource, Rey was pumped to hurry and get things done. He had many great things that he wanted to do in this world, and this run-down, abandoned ruin will become his foundation to greatness.