"Hey, Alex."
On my way to the mosque, I bump into Hugo at a food stand outside called 'Dino's delicacies'.
"Hello there, what are you doing out here?"
He hands me a flask in response.
"I wanted to try the food. I always feel the people leaving the stand filled with contentment. Try the hot cocoa I just handed you."
I take a swig of the flask.
"Zoo wee mama!"
This is so good!!
"I assume 'Zoo wee mama' means you like it?"
"Yeah, I got to get me some."
"I thought so, so I got two flasks that one is yours. Just pay me back another time."
"I love you."
________________________
In the classroom, we're sipping our flask on the window stills and waiting for class for class to start.
"Hey, by the way, I've been getting a weird feeling from you. Did you breakthrough?"
Goddamn, his empathy is useful.
"Yeah, I opened my soul last night. I finally caught up to you."
"Yeah well, I still broke through a week before you, Alex."
"Shut."
"I don't shut up, slowpoke."
I'll push this kid out of the window.
Just as I am about to go through with it, the door opens.
"Stop it Alex, get to your seat. The same goes for the rest of you."
Saved by the bell.
I give my friend one last baleful gaze before sitting down.
"Alright everyone, it's Thursday so like usual we're going to do assisted cultivation till lunch and theology in the afternoon. Any questions before I start?"
Assisted cultivation basically means you are free to do whatever you want, and the nerds can cultivate and ask questions. Half the class never does anything, though it's exactly what I need today.
"No question? Ok, I set your guys free."
Once these words leave his mouth the Fred and his gang immediately leave for the backyard while the shy blobs, Tim and Anna, leave for the balcony. Only Hugo, Amy, and I stay behind in the classroom.
"Alex and Amy, I'm guessing you want to know how you can continue cultivating?"
Amy broke through too?
I thought I was fast...
"Yes, Brother Hansen."
"Hugo you can listen in too. I don't think you understood everything last time I explained."
Or nothing at all. The big doofus isn't exactly bright when it comes to this sort of stuff.
"Ok."
Brother Hansen stands up and gets into his lecturing position in front of the blackboard.
"Let's start by where you are at now. You two have opened your soul, so you're now halfway into becoming a real spiritual cultivator."
He starts writing on the board.
"As you may know cultivation is split into ranks, the rank where you guys are at now has many names, but rank 0 is the most widespread. Once you reach rank 1 you'll be the real deal, a real cultivator!"
Now I truly feel like I'm in a novel. My cheat system should pop out any second now...
Or not.
"Why aren't we real spiritual cultivators yet?"
"Good question Hugo, it's because you don't have the body or soul of a cultivator yet. That's what rank 0 is all about. Making yourself suitable for cultivation."
We have to modify ourselves?
"So how do we do that?"
"There are three steps to it, I'll explain them briefly, and then I'll give each of you the rank 0 continuations of the Rising Soul Prayer that will have more details."
He points to his writing. It says 'initial-stage something something'.
"First, this is the initial-stage of rank 0. You have to transform you're Soulscape to store energy in it. Depending on your Soulscape what you do will look different, but typically it's a lake, river, or tank."
He points to the second line of text.
"Mid-stage rank 0 is modifying your bloodstream to transport the energy. You have to be able to use it across your body after all. I warn you this one will hurt."
Third line.
"Lastly, late-stage rank 0 is finding your Soulscape's unique talent and fusing it together with the energy supply and transportation system."
Unique talent?! This sounds cool.
"What do you mean unique talent, Brother?"
"Every Soulscape has a unique talent. It can be a skill or attribute. I would like to give you examples, but a unique talent is a cultivator's most guarded secret, never reveal yours. All I can say is you'll know it when you see it."
He wears a cheeky smile knowing very well how much I would like an example.
Thank you for being as vague as possible.
He then hands the three of us a book with Rising Soul Prayer' written on them.
"Alex and Amy, you'll probably want to go outside to practice. It's still more effective there. I'll take Hugo through the material here."
Smart.
"Ok, thank you very much, Brother Hansen."
A quick bow later, I split from Amy, on her way to Fred, and go on my way to shy blob village on the balcony.
I arrive to see Tim and Anna sitting as far away from each other as possible.
Oh god...
I sit myself down in an armchair in the middle. I lie back and the liveliness of spring invades me. In this comfy place, I want to get cozy.
However, I can't. The awkward atmosphere is just too much. All I can do is bury my mind in the instructions for 'Rising Soul Prayer', and hope to Elat that these two will suddenly grow sociability.
Luckily, Hugo arrives at lunchtime and bails me out.
"Hey, Alex wants to get some more hot cocoa at Dino's before theology begins?"
"Yes! Definitely! Let's get out of here immediately."
I go for a few meters so that they can't hear me before.
"That's was so awkward! I'd much rather have gone with Fred's group."
"Haha, I could feel your pain from the classroom."
"Never again."
I take a minute to repress the awkwardness far back in my mind.
"So, how was it with Brother Hansen?"
"Good he explained everything I have to do. Don't even need to read the book anymore."
"I'm happy for you. I couldn't get through a single page back there."
I couldn't concentrate at all.
"Oh yeah, brother Hansen did say something interesting though."
"What is it?"
"He told me that at the end of the year we're going to have a tournament against all the other Dawn classes."
"Aren't they all like older and more experienced than us?"
Participation for us sounds like masochism.
"That why he said we have to get stronger fast."
"Fair enough."