I looked dazzled at the scene before looking around in confusion, but all I saw around me were high grasses and vibrant red flowers, which I took a closer look at to realize were Teuilas*. The sun was shining brightly from above me and the wind blew against me, which made me realize I didn't have my mask on anymore and I was in a pair of modern-day clothing, a shirt and shorts.
A screeching brought my attention, and I saw the woman who was looking in the distance when I first entered here, now looking down at something that looked like a skinny snake. The snake gave me an odd feeling. One full of discomfort and warning, while the woman looked at it with no expression.
She turned it around, and the snake tried to bite her, but a golden flame erupted from her hands and the thing made a final screech before sizzling out. The odd feeling went away with it, making me breathe out a breath I didn't realize I was holding in.
Compressive with what I saw, I looked around once more before slowly making my way to the only person seen here. When I walked up and looked at her, she was already looking down at me, giving me a good look at her appearance.
The woman looked around her mid-thirties. She had a more sturdy build with golden skin and hair I could not see as it was tucked into the headpiece she was wearing. The head piece was beautiful as it started from her forehead with many silver polished shells, then transitioned to five bigger shells that overlaid one another onto six beaded skinny poles that had little red-colored feathers at the end of them. On the back of the headdress, a hair-like material sprouted out like a mane.
She wore a strapless red top that wrapped around her chest and a high-waisted skirt that looked to be made from tan and red fabric, feathers, and bark from a tree. Various designs were stitched in the fabrics of ocean waves and the vibrant Teuilas, giving a focal point from which her legs could be seen, which are covered in patterns of dots and lines.
"So you're the next Sun Natura." She assessed me with a vigorous voice, much different from the cold expression I saw earlier. Her golden eyes looked me up and down. "They weren't kidding when they said how rare the Sun Natura is. The time difference between you and me is what? 10 million years or was it 1 billion?" She looked away from me to ponder while I looked at her, finally catching up to speed and having a mental click of who she was.
"You're the dancer." I signed, which caught her attention.
She looked at my hands confused before making an 'oh' face, "Sorry, little Afi* I have no idea how to read sign language." She scooted over and patted beside her as she suggested, "Come up here and write it in my hand?"
In confusion, I looked up at the boulder, which looked nearly like a small mountain, before looking around it to see if there was any way to climb on it. I tried to climb a couple times, but each time I slipped and even one time I landed on my back and knocked the breath out of me. I tried a couple more times before looking up to see her looking down at me with amusement in her eyes.
"It seems like you're having troubles." She noted, not moving to offer me a hand or something. My face probably showed my bewilderment and slowly growing frustration as she laughed and flicked her hand at the Teuilas.
"Maybe they can be of help. On my little island, Teuilas are flowers born by the Sun. Thus, they have a lot of energy in them. However, they're very stubborn about giving them out, so it might take time for you to actually convince one to give you some."
I looked at the large Teuilas before looking up at her, who was looking down at me like a chestier cat. Big smile while she lay on her side. All she's missing are the stripe colors and a tail and ears.
"What do flowers that have energy in them have to do with me communicating with you?" I wanted to ask, but put my hands down after remembering why I was trying to go up there in the first place. I looked at the Teuilas in front of me in confusion.
Gives energy?
What kind of energy are we talking about? Why would I need it to climb the boulder? What does energy have to do with anything?
I looked up at her, who was still watching me with a curious tilt, but I ignored it as I looked at the red flowers around me.
"It doesn't hurt to try?" I tried to rationalize, but the whole situation was bizarre. I tried to see if any of the Teuilas looked different from one another but soon gave up as they all looked identical, besides maybe their sizes. So, I went to a big one but was stopped by the woman's voice from behind me.
"I'm not saying you cannot do it, but I will say that you will get a headache before the Teuila even bothers to give you a thought." I looked back at her, who still had her smile, and after staring at one another, I finally retreated, knowing she wouldn't say much more on the matter.
I thought about it and concluded that the flower sizes probably represent how much energy they have in them. More energy is probably harder to obtain, so I looked around once more before finding a small flower that was the same height as me. When I got to it, I looked towards the boulder that was now southwest of me and saw that the woman had moved so she could see me comfortably.
She looked at me and shifted her gaze to the Teuila. Despite being so far away, I could still hear her hum, but she didn't say anything. I took that as I was on the right track as I looked back at the red flower and touched it.
I didn't feel much; besides just feeling like a normal flower, maybe it felt a lot more sturdy than the usual flower I'd touched in the past. However, I never touched one of these flowers before, so I have no accurate basis to judge it on.
I left my hand there to feel anything and even closed my eyes, but I felt nothing. I stayed there, touching the flower in different ways and even touching the petals one by one, but all I felt was the actual plant.
What exactly does energy feel like? Lighting? Was I supposed to feel a shock or maybe a rumble?
A sigh was heard before a tired voice spoke. "Little Afi. I know you didn't start this without knowing how to do anything first." I low-key flinched because the way her tone sounded was just like my mom's when I'm about to get in trouble.
Hesitantly, I looked over and met her unimpressed face as she lifted up an eyebrow. I wanted to ask what exactly I needed to know before doing this. Was she not the one telling me about energy flowers? I still don't know what exactly I needed them for. However, the woman didn't know sign language, so I swallowed all my grievances and shook my head, which caused her to groan.
"Little Afi." I looked up at the woman, who was now standing on the boulder. "Do you know how the sun is born?"
How the sun is born?
The question left me in a stalemate trying to connect energy with the sun and all I can imagine are solar panels. I glanced over at the sun before looking at her and nodding my head. The sun is a star that is created by a nebula and the nebula is made from the gases and particles of hydrogen and helium, sometimes from exploding stars, depending on what kind it is.
"Good, then you know the nebula is the first step in a repeating cycle. Look at the Teuila." She instructed. I oblige, trying to understand her thought process as she continues. "That flower in front of you is a bank full of gases and particles of hydrogen and helium. You, as a baby nebula, need it."
A nebula? I tasted the word before thinking about it in full detail. I thought about the process of one creating, how they become bigger, and how they eventually turn into a-
I blinked as the word became bigger in my head.
A star.
That's right, the sun is a star. Is this the sun cultivation manual she's teaching me? However, it's a book based on dances and this doesn't look like a dance. Or maybe this cultivation is different? After all, Wang Nuo didn't recognize the beats at all and made a guess.
Feeling more energized knowing what's happening, I looked at the flower as the woman spoke up, "Try to bring it to you." I look from over my shoulder at her, who just smiled, before focusing on the task at hand.
Bring it to me?
I looked at the flower and thought back to my astronomy class that I took for fun. The nebula pulls the gases and dust from gravity and with it; it makes the nebula bigger and its gravity pull much stronger.
"Gravity... " I thought while looking towards the flower before reaching out and grabbing it.
If I were the nebula and this was the gas and dust, I wouldn't touch it. Immediately, I let go, but I still paid attention to the bright red flower in front of me.
I would drag it towards me, but how? I don't have the scientific machinery to do such a thing as make gravity bend to my will. That's the type of thing you see in comics with telekinesis. However, this isn't some comic.
"But it is a cultivation world," I subconsciously thought. Remembering about the fully conscious weapon earlier and all the "magical" things I experienced through my stay of a couple months, I finally had a click.
"Why couldn't I try telekinesis? We're literally in a place I wasn't in a couple of minutes ago. The real question is, how I do it? I wasn't a big comic fan; that was more of Jordan's and-" I paused in my thought and felt my mood degrade.
Closing my eyes, I inhaled and exhaled, trying to calm myself before opening them again and redirecting my thinking route. I thought more about what I know about telekinesis.
The ability to move something without touching it and what I want to move, is physical but I can't see it, so I have to feel it. How does one feel something they can't see?
I looked back at the woman, who now had her eyes closed while leaning back to enjoy the sun. Feeling my gaze, she peaked at me with one eye and smiled before resuming her fully closed eye sun bathing.
Taking inspiration, I looked back at the flower and sat down while closing my eyes. I did meditation a couple of times in the past. It was not my favorite way to try to calm down or to connect with my "inner self." All it brought were memories that made me wish to just jump off a cliff into the sea of flames.
Yet here I am willingly doing it without someone telling me to and I'm just hoping that what I'm doing is trying to connect with the "gases and dust" and not "internal peace" bullshit.
Breathing in, I imagine the flower in front of me, then imagine what I remember what a nebula looks like. I filter in my head between different types before sticking with the classic Emission Nebula*. Nebula with its blue, pink, oranges, and purple swirling in the infinite expanses of space.
That is what I am.
That is what I need to be. Right now, I'm nothing.
Breathing in, I tried to think of a suction with the image of my head. I watched as my fuzzy imagination slowly solidified and then slowly shifted to something else.
I suddenly felt light, causing me to open my eyes in confusion. My surroundings were completely black as I drifted in a void of nothingness. No longer were there vibrant red flowers, sunshine, bright skies, and a low-key, fallen-asleep woman. I looked around until something glowed in front of me, shifting my sight from the left of me to what was in front of me.
There was a glowing orb. One similar to what I saw on the spear, but this one wasn't an icy blue but a multicolor one and much bigger, the size of a baseball. Shifting colors among the colors you see in a nebula, it had two rings of dust particles and gas rotating around it, looking similar to an atom.
I studied the new thing, making the judgement that this is what I'm looking for. With my eyes still on it, I tried to move to it, but I couldn't put my feet anywhere, and I just remained floating. With furrowed brows, I closed my eyes again and imagined floating my way over. I felt my body shift and move. However, when I opened my eyes, the orb was still the same distance away from me.
"What the hell?" I thought, and right before trying again, a voice sounded out.
"Keep your eyes on the prize." Startled, I turned my head, and the woman sat floating a distance away from me, with her body leaned forward and smiling broadly. "How would you know what you want if you're not looking at it?" She lectured with a lifted eyebrow.
Eyeing her, I focus my attention back on the orb, not paying attention to the woman who was laughing at me. Breathing in, I focused my eyes on where the orb was and imagined myself floating over there.
It took a bit longer before I actually moved. I was floating; however, my body spun out of control and whenever the orb left my sight, I noticed it move somewhere else. I paused myself and rethought my way of traveling.
"Maybe I can drag it to me?" I thought and looked over and the orb shook a bit before slowly coming my way. I thought it was going to be a success, but suddenly it broke from my hold and went to its previous spot. The action made a painful ache spread in my body and I doubled over, inhaling.
Looking over at the orb that was acting harmless, I gritted my teeth and once again I made my way over to the orb. This time I didn't spin, but I moved much slower, similar to a rundown escalator. I was patient with it and when I was within reach; I went to grab the orb, but suddenly it flew quickly before stopping a mile away from me.
"Ah, you almost got it, little Afi." The Samoan woman sighed behind me, but when I glared over at her, she had a big smile on her face, holding back from laughing out loud.
I huffed out before once again making my way to the orb. Repeatedly, the action continued, with me floating to get the orb and the orb flying from my reach. The only thing positive was that I was becoming much faster, but with my speed, the orb became much nimbler as well.
It was like a comedic cartoon of a cat trying to catch a crafty mouse.
Finally, I stopped and panted, as a headache was forming in my head as I was actively moving my body while trying to grab the orb the whole time.
"This isn't going to work," I think, but looking around, there is nothing near me to trap it. Multiple times, I tried my previous idea of moving the orb toward me, but the orb would only halt a bit before once again speeding away like some track superstar racing against a kindergartener.
"You know that book you have isn't the real one, right?" I looked over at the red-dressed woman who was now lying on her stomach like a 16-year-old during a sleepover. She kicked her feet while her head was held with one hand and she was looking down at her red-painted nails.
She looked over at me as I nodded my head. She hummed before asking, "Then did you know that the book is full of dances?" I was about to nod again but she spoke again, "Well, of course you did; you called me the dancer when you met me."
Confused, I looked at her. "I thought you didn't know sign language?" I signed, and she looked at my hands before looking up at me.
"Didn't I tell you I didn't know sign language, little Afi? You would have to write it on my hand for me." She smiled, showcasing all her teeth, as she held out her hand. I looked at the hand and then at her face, which only had a smile, before carefully floating towards her but stopping as she floated away at the same pace.
"I have to warn you, I'm faster than that Energy Sphere." she said cheekily, noticing when I speeded up. Sighing out, I stopped in my tracks, no longer trying to solve the riddle of whether she could understand me or not.
Laughing out loud, she teased, "Gave up already? So boring." I didn't entertain her as I turned my body to focus back on the orb that didn't move an inch from where it had last stayed. "Aw, don't be mad at me, little Afi. I haven't talked to anybody in a while."
Suddenly, I was looking at an upside-down face. My eye twitched as she smiled at me as she spoke. "I won't lie. So far, you're doing good and you had the right idea about pulling the Energy Sphere to you; however, that's the method for something else."
She didn't explain what that something else was as she floated closer to the orb, and with a quick movement, she grabbed it before it could fly away. She didn't go any faster than what I did, but when she grabbed it, she made a body motion before doing so.
"Are nebulas a still thing?" She asked me as she turned to look at me. The orb in her hand was like a wet kitten that would sometimes fight back with little to no success in getting away from the woman's grip.
I shook my head. Nebulas are not static things. Of course, the middle part of a nebula is slow, but it's only slow compared to the outer part, which moves around 500 miles per hour.
She smiled wildly as she spoke, "Correct. They are not slow or stay in one place, but they are relatively stable. Of course, there are times that they are not." Her eyes turned blank when she said that. Her body stiffened, and the orb in her hand almost escaped from her grip, but quickly she blinked and tightened her lax grasp.
"My bad." She said slowly, continuing to blink before shaking her head and a wider smile spread across her face. "Sometimes I zone out. Pay no mind." She explained, moving her hand back and forth.
I looked at her in concern, but she ignored my look and continued to teach, "What you got down is a bit of the speed, but what you don't get down is stability. Outwardly, you're fast, but inside, you have to be stable."
She let go of the orb, which quickly flew away, while I kept in mind the word stable. Stability could mean many things. It could represent almost anything. What exactly in the context is she talking about stable?
"Both body and mind." I blinked and saw she was sitting in front of me.
With furrowed brows, I hesitantly said in my head, "You can read my thoughts?" She didn't say anything, but her eyes squinted at how big her smile became.
"So what is the whole point of me having to write in your hand if you can just read my thoughts?" I asked innerly, but she didn't say anything, shifting her head, playing clueless.
The more time went by in quietness, the more I grew to doubt my judgement. Maybe she was just good at reading people?
"Thank you. I met a lot of people to develop the ability." She cheerfully said and before I was even going to react, she placed a finger in my face while saying, "First lesson. Never doubt yourself. Especially in this world where that could be the end of you."
Tsking, I nodded my head under her gloating face before she slowly brought up another finger. "However, don't assume things. Maybe I can read minds. Maybe I'm just good at reading faces. Maybe I'm both. But always and I mean always." She took her hand away and replaced it with her face.
Her smile dropped, and her golden eyes looked at me with sternness as she spoke slowly, "Always prepare for everything. Cutting corners will be your death bed before you even realize it as a bed at all."
I clenched my hands and nodded my head. She studied me a bit more before smiling big. All sternness was gone as she smiled goofily at me. "I still require you to come write in my hand to tell me what you need to say."
Baffled, I watched as she leaned back and stretched before getting herself comfortable as she said, "What I mean by stable is that you must have a goal. We're different from a Nebula that has a natural ability to be stable, but it also has a natural ability to not be stable. For us, our stability isn't natural. It runs through our emotions. So a goal is what you need and how you're going to put it into action."
"How I put it into action?" I think while she hummed.
"For example, my goal was never to go back home." I looked at her in surprise while she looked at me like she didn't say anything of significance. I thought everyone's goal was to return to their world.
Suddenly, pain was felt in the middle of my forehead, causing me to hiss while holding the place. Looking at the culprit, who retrieved her hand as if she hadn't just flicked me with no remorse.
"No assuming!" She pointed at me and I grumbled, but nodded my head quickly when she reached out her hand again. "That's what I thought." She boasted before explaining, "When I died in my real world, I wasn't the only one to die, so there was no reason for me to go back."
I felt my heart twitch in sympathy, but she smiled softly as she continued to say, "So my goal was to preserve my Samoan culture and you should already know how I did this, but if you don't, it involves the first thing you said to me."
"You danced." I said.
She smiled before belly-laughing and shouted happily, "I Siva*!"