"My lord, we found Ho'thaw" Jasha said while prostrating on both hands and knees.
"Is that so" Kata said after blowing out a tendril of thick smoke.
"He has been killed, the body has wounds all over...it was a struggle".
"Ho'thaw was the weakest among you, but he was the oldest and most loyal bury him with the ancestors".
"Should we send the Bayana after the murderer?
"No, I will see to it personally".
"My Lord" he said as he hurriedly backed away still bowing.
Those are not just petty words.
Kata doted on Ho'thaw sixty years ago, loved him thirty years ago and will now forgive him for the ultimate crime one can commit, disobeying her.
Allowing him to be buried with his tribe is the final act of kindness for him, it would have brought him to tears if he was standing before her.
Of course if he was standing before her, he would be sentenced to death.
Kata stared at the pipe in front of her letting out another thick cloud of smoke, a smile grew on her beautiful face.
A smile that turned into laughter.
***
Refusing to close my eyes I kept staring at the open plains my back resting against a rock and my breathing was heavy.
It was nearing the end of the day, I knew Kata would catch up with me and if not her then her riders would be around any moment.
But my body refused to move, managing only to twitch my thumb.
As soon as I feel Ava awaken I share with her all that happened and go to sleep.
Waking up only hours later to be met with complete darkness.
There was no sunlight or moonlight nor any lights from the stars.
The air was thin and musky.
I moved my hand and finally realized I was underground, only then did I go back to sleep.
I slept for a the whole day and night waking with to a growling stomach and dry mouth.
I drank out of the tattered waterskin and layed my head back down.
I didn't have the mana to reach out to Ava yet and even if I did I wouldn't.
I needed rest, my scabs itched and my bones ached.
Waking again mid day I feel Ava touching me, I am lightheaded and my throat was itchy.
I bet I was running a fever.
Sweat made the white robes underneath my leather armor stick to me, mixed with the dry blood it gave me a uniqely horrible stench.
Chugging some more water I sit up straight in the darkness and begin to breath deeply trying to get a flow of energy.
Ava had to leave me often, going thirty yards away from me.
Due to her inate property I would only get a fraction of the mana she got and barely any went to my mana core.
It was one of the reasons I decided to leave immediately, she was degrading.
Getting smaller every day and sleeping more often.
I would measure her multiple times a day with my sheath and the rate at which she decreased was getting faster.
Studying her would be hard around the Inka.
Aura was being created and reabsobed my cells using it as fuel in place of glucose.
It took me eight hours but I could walk and my fever was gone.
I had Ava scan for food, catching a yellow bird I broke its neck and fried it while walking west.
The white mountain was still winking at me from a distance.
Not stopping for anything I head towards the mountain range.
As I got closer other mountains began to take shape around the white one.
But for some off reason the size of the mountain just wasn't changing.
I payed it no mind, even if something was wrong with the mountain there was nothing I can do about it.
I came upon larger prey the further west I went and luckily a few more watering holes.
Not caring if the water was muddy I drank my fill and washed myself of the blood only to slap mud on myself to hide my stench from predators.
Many byson like beasts roamed the Savanna, constant prey to scaly raptor like predators with long arms and a small white horn in the middle of their forhead.
It was like they farmed them, always staying a distance away from the heard and hunting one every few days forcing them north west.
The landscape slowly changing from a desert into a mixed woodland-grassland ecosystem.
The high grass was getting higher the further in I went.
Nearly two weeks later I was well fed and back to my healthy self, only with some new scars added to the tapestry.
I happened across a lone Hyena which the Inka called Bayanna while flying.
Sneaking up on it, I submitted it by sending a tendril of mana to it's brain and holding it down until it bent to my will.
My constantly sore feet welcome the relief as it can run for days on end and It allowed me to save my energy.
I named the beast 'Hyena'.
I chose it to ride because compared to other predators it ate much less.
'Hyena' ate meat raw so it wasn't a problem feeding it as there was plenty of game but I learned my lesson long ago to only take what I need and move on.
From little grey meerkats to boars the size of a horses, the savanna was full of life.
I slept only when Ava was awake which was now four to six hours out of the day.
She usually woke in the evening.
My mana core felt like it was a bottomless pit, but I didn't mind and didn't rush to try and fill it with energy.
If anything I have learned is that I avoided a death sentence more than once because of mana abuse.
Something they Lissi didn't mention was that the more mana one used the more world energy is drawn in by the mana core.
Creating more stress on the body along the way.
I'm not sure if she knew that and didn't tell me or genuinely didn't know.
For that reason I took it easy on the mana usage making sure to not fly and use my new steed instead.
I was only attacked once at night, by a snake large enough to eat Hyena in one gulp.
It tried to sneak up on me but I sensed it within my mana range, flying into the air I threw my new dagger through it's eye retrieving and throwing it repeatedly until all four of its eyes are blinded.
Hunting it from that point on was just tedious work.
Ava being awake hated the slow bleeding and the stench of its blood.
Hyena and I feasted on it over the fire that night.
As I stared at the fire and the large brown beast ripping into the raw meat the words 'eat or be eaten' echoed in my mind.
***
"It seems you acomplished your mission, and all before the halfway point" Rumi said smiling at the Alia as they watched Yuit meditate with his mana in front of him.
"Extreme emotional duress is usually how people condense their mana core, at least that's how I did it" Alia said while turning around and heading towards the starboard side.
The large Sand Rider was following the flow of the sand river.
The mountain was imposing as it cast a shadow on the land..
"Where are you going, are you not going to celebrate"?
"What's there to celebrate"? Alia asked.
"You just turned a Jun into a Mage, he will remember you for the rest of his life come now and take some responsibility".
Alia rolled her eyes and continued walking heading to the stern where the rest of the children are all sitting and meditating.
"I thought Jun is a beast"? Yuit said opening his eyes as his mana flew into his chest.
"They are, it's a term used for those not blessed by the gods like we are" Rumi smiled and placed his hand on the boys shoulder.
"You are special Yuit, you share a responsibility that only a chosen few have" his smile was as wide as the lies he was telling the boy.
"What responsibility is that"? Yuit stood up straight feeling the energy brim through his body, he felt invincible.
"To praise the gods and to follow there bidding in the mortal realm" Rumi said, unlike the others Rumi is a devoute follower of the Terran god Lum.
"There are many roads open to you now, we will talk about that when we make it to the Association".
Rumi leaned on his thin long sword and patted the young mans back.
"How far is it from here"? Yuit asked becoming more comfortable by the second.
"It will be a few months before we are across the other side of the mountains and after that is the another stretch of desert".
"Then we must cross the Forest of the Two Kings, only then will we be able to see the Boone Empire".
"When we get there, I will recommend you to join House Kiseson it is the noblest House and the House in which I serve".
Yuit opened his eyes wide.
Hearing the name throughout his childhood he thought it was a legend but now he is standing next to one of the vassals of the great Yarlen.
Rumi smiled and enjoyed the boys pure shock and awe, it made him think of a sharp eyed runt that looked like he didn't trust a thing he said.