"Look, no one told us that Riversword's Serval actually lived up to the rumors. How--?" They were cut off as a hand wraps around their throat and lifts them off the ground.
"Silence. I refuse to believe two children can really outlast five adults, no matter how resourceful or talented. I want you to scatter and expand your search. Go! Before I kill you all." The figure snarls, throwing the animus lacky onto the ground.
The group immediately scatters away, leaving the person by themselves. The person's teeth gnash with a conflicted feeling: if they had gone, the princess would be in their clutches but their identity might have been revealed!
***
The rapid change from civilian to aurator, Tara sees now, took a great toll on Viyen who faints when it's over. Tara immediately puts her into the extra cot within the tent once she's certain Viyen's breathing is okay. Afterwards, Tara begins to meditate.
In transferring her original vanishing paper notebooks to diamond scrolls, she had originally planned to do only that. With how the ancient script bound the information to her aural ports, Tara spent her week at the castle recording and meditating on any new information revealed to her.
To Tara, instead of focusing on the ancient memories, it was better to further her understanding of things she had learned! For instance, Sunlight Stroll's dazzling effect could be used separate from the technique as long as she had solar energy within her and Moonlight Prowl could mask her presence as she moved from place to place automatically. Finally, the names of the next levels above Marrow Sparking were revealed to her: Eye Illuminating and Navel Enshrouding! Tara was excited to return to Beiling's side and ask about them!
Tara had only scratched the surface of this next section before the attempted kidnapping. Breaking into the next barrier of ancient memories had been a little harder this time.
Tara can barely use any of her new skills such as Rend Sunlight. Similar to Ember Gather, Rend Sunlight was a singular focused weapon skill that left three slashes from solar blades along the body. Likewise Sever Moonlight was a ranged attack from her weapon like the Rain Scatter. However a major difference was it could strike multiple foes minds with three lunar blades!
If being able to use Body Art skills with weapons was possible then the reverse should be true as well. Tara wanted to be able to use them without pulling out her daggers.
Tara's barriers and concealment would last for another eight hours before needing to be reapplied. Tara spends this time organizing the next bit of ancient memories. Afterwards she would inspect them clearly and start training them as much as she could.
Tara isn't entirely certain the two of them were safe. If the Longs were working together with an animus kingdom to capture Viyen, Tara had to become as strong as she could to protect her. Who knows who'd they'd send since the original team had failed!
A thought crosses as she finishes her fifth hour of meditation. Tara takes out the spatial rings she had retrieved. It was said that spatial rings locked onto their wielders' aura and therefore could not be broken into by an outside party. After unlocking Viyen's aural ports, Tara was thinking otherwise. She channels her combined energy into one of the rings causing a fuzzy light green color to appear over the item before it bursts apart like a popped bubble. Tara gives a hoot of excitement as she goes through the four other rings.
Inside she finds two swords, two whips, a handaxe, ten coppers, thirteen silver coins, food supplies, a variety of medicines, and five scrolls. Tara inspects some of the pills, the craftship definitely not done by humans. These were pills for an animus aurator! Tara had only been studying human pill making techniques so she had a huge interest to see what they could do. The scrolls are even more interesting though! From what Tara understands, they are messenger scrolls.
Using her aura she can summon a creature and send a message to a person as long as she knows their energy signature. Tara thinks for a moment before she starts to fiddle with three of them. Afterwards, she summons three birds: a crow, sparrow, and cardinal. They come out with a turquoise color with a little influence from Wolyung.
"Hidden," She says and they bend the light around them to turn invisible using Moonlit Stroll. Tara sends them off at different intervals to the three people she trusts the most: her mother, her teacher, and Leiana. Afterwards, Tara reworks her arrays before waking up Viyen. Rather to be safe Tara has already packed everything away and they descend deeper within the cave. As they traveled, Tara informs Viyen of having sent the messages.
They walk for some time down a single path before it splits in two ways. Tara uses her senses and figures it's better to go to the right.
The left was a dead end and the right led to a large open chamber. As they entered the chamber that held a pool of water that was at the end of the cavern river, Tara turned to Viyen. "Were you taught any self defense?"
Though not nearly on par with actual aurators, many civilians learned some form of self defense and weapon training just in case. Viyen nods. "I was taught by my family's ways of combat and elder brother Yaoyang taught me a few tips as well. Why?"
Viyen's reaction is quick as she deflects a punch! Tara represses herself to a low tier Skin Igniting. Viyen's confused for a moment when she realizes Tara wants to make sure she can fend for herself and to cement her newly minted status as an aurator.
They go several rounds only for Tara to be surprised even though Viyen's just broke through. She's analytical about her surroundings and each move she makes is three steps ahead. Each blow carries the extra power of water energy into it which means Tara has to use her Twin Sphere energy as an equalizer.
Tara makes breakfast after their sparring session. "I mean no offense but I can see why someone might try and stop you from being an aurator. You're frightening to spar with."
Viyen laughs. "You sound like my siblings! Even my eldest brother, the crown prince, said that!" Tara feels chills run down her spine, hesitating her cooking. From what she learned from Leiana and Yaoyang during a meal period, the crown prince was powerful enough to enter inner disciples of the Eightsword sect years ago and had only gotten stronger since.
Because Tara is distracted, she doesn't sense the arrival of multiple figures before they had practically surrounded them. The two girls had made camp near the pool of water where the first group rose from. The second group piled through the various tunnels in the chamber.
The figures that came through the pond had black fur upon their body with white tails visible from their backside. Piercing blue eyes glare at them from long noses as they carry fearsome spears. The other group has large white bat-like ears with heart shaped noses to match. They hover in the air, white enormous bat wings sprouting from their arms as they carry sabers.
Tara and Viyen rise slowly. As Tara goes to scan them with her lunar mind, a spear pokes her back and a saber lifts her chin. A bat animus woman tilts Tara's head.
"You're a Light bearer?" She asks confusedly and Tara's eyes widened. So far nobody she hadn't come across had been able to sense her lunar mind. And yet these hidden people had easily picked up on her strongest ability. "You'll come with us. We won't hurt you since you are both part of the great family."
"The great family?" Tara responds slowly, collecting her gear before they are herded along. The woman shakes her head as one of the echidna animus men behind them chuckles.
"I suppose they no longer teach such an idea in the outside world. It was a long held belief that all animus share a singular ancestor. So we are called the great family," The woman says, taking out two pieces of black cloth and placing it over their eyes, "Forgive me but I cannot reveal the direction to our home."
The two girls made no arguments. Without Tara's ability to see what their cultivation was, they couldn't make any sudden movements with the ten warriors.
With how familiar the two groups interact from what she could hear, Tara guesses that their clan was a fusion of the bat and echidna animus working together instead of apart. They travel for an hour and Tara attempts to keep track of how many times they twisted and turned through the inner workings of the cave system.
Soon enough their ears were met with a variety of chatter and conversation, some in the animus native tongue while other bits in the human tongue.
[Hidden Location Found: City Of The Protectors]
The notification catches Tara off guard! Her eyes sparkle at having some place like this. What are they protecting? How important was it to her Story?
They did not stop marching until the familiar flip of a tent was heard. Their blindfolds are carefully removed. Before them are two armored people who wore jewelry and held hands.
One was a bulking amber toned man who had redder fur than the others, his eyes a glacial blue. The woman, unlike the other pale bat animus, has rich oak skin in contrast to her white ears and wings. Both Tara and Viyen recognize some of the symbols the male chief wore, all items representing Graviej. They didn't recognize the symbols the female chief wore.
"I am Li Xiwen, chief of the Shade Echidna clan." The man pauses to let his companion speak.
"I am Zhang Sioti, chief of the Bright Bat clan." The woman speaks clearly, eyes scanning over the two people. Tara is unnerved because she couldn't sense any energy coming off either of them. This meant that they were either civilians or more powerful than her to the point where they could mask their abilities. "My mystics tell me you two are powerful heroes despite being so young. What is your purpose with our people?"
Tara is certain Zhang Sioti had long since sensed the two of them. She hesitates to speak but surprisingly, Viyen steps forward. Tara watches in awe as the meek and shy disposition disappears, replaced with the regality of a princess.
"Many apologies for intruding into your lands. My name is Xei Viyen, Fourth Princess of the Kingdom of Riversword. Beside me is my friend and guardian Hufang Tara. She only yesterday rescued me from a kidnapping plot. We entered your cavern system as a means of hiding ourselves and recuperation."
"So you wish to seek asylum?" Li Xiwen asks, eyes narrowing. Viyen takes a step back at his glare but Tara steps forward and interlocks hands with her. This was enough for Viyen to steady herself.
"My companion sent messages back to our homeland. The symbol painted on her wrist," Tara lifts up her right wrist, "Is a tracking inscription. Though we don't know how far away from Riversword's territory we are, soon more powerful people than us will arrive."
Both girls' eyes are blazing with worry but also fighting intent. Neither are sure of how strong the forces surrounding them are but they can't afford to be cautious or weak.
They lock eyes with the leaders before them, causing the tension in the air to become thick. Then, Xiwen's large beard begins to tremble as his chuckle evolves into hearty laughter.
"If any of our clan's children had your bravery, maybe we could leave these caves to explore the outside a bit," He praises them, jokingly. His wife swats at him with a glare and he sighs, "But we have our duties to uphold. Come, let us find you a place to rest. Today, we will hold a feast as it is not every day we are graced with the presence of the princess and her knight. Tomorrow, the two of us will answer the questions you surely have."