After Juba had convinced his teacher he was desperately needed and boasted at Haze, the two entered the forest. Juba hadn't told Charlotte what they were doing; they were moving somewhat stealthy to avoid the animals. There was a boar that seemed to break things easily. It might have the ability to enhance itself. It was fighting against a sneak that seemed to teleport wherever it pleased; from the small info Charlotte gathered, it marked spots with its Chi and used it to teleport itself. The boar made the mistake of stepping on one of the marks, and it teleported around the boar and squeezed its neck.
The fight gathered more animals, which provided the perfect cover for them to keep moving. Juba was leading them closer to the mountains at the forest's edge, and Charlotte couldn't keep quiet any longer.
"What are we doing here? I'm starting to think you brought me out here to try and kill me." Juba bursts into laughter, making Charlotte jump and climb up his back slightly to cover his mouth. Charlotte looked around to make sure he didn't attract any animals while Juba licked his hand, trying to make him let go.
"You know I used to make weapons with these hands. Are you sure you want to lick them?" Juba's eyes widened as he immediately seized his actions and tried to push Charlotte off his back. He refused to let in if he started yelling, ending with Charlotte getting a piggyback ride through the forest. It was good that nobody else was out and about to see this.
The two eventually arrived near the mountains, but not without incident. Juba attempted to pull Charlotte off his back, slamming him against a tree. While it hurt slightly, he refused to let go. Slamming him against the tree attracted a pack of wolves, each controlling a different element. The pack's alpha was twice the size of a normal wolf; luckily, Juba controlled the wind to keep their scent away. It wasn't long till the pack moved on and left the two alone.
Juba walked along the edge of the mountains, looking for something. Charlotte didn't ask and let him do his thing. He eventually stopped in front of a cave and tapped his hand. Charlotte pulled his hand away, figuring he had something important to say.
"Alright, get off my back; I can't help you learn anything like this." Juba said, slightly annoyed, as Charlotte jumped off his back, looked at the cave, and tilted their head.
"How exactly does a cave help me? I am not questioning your methods. I'd like to know the reason for it." Charlotte approached the cave, wondering if any animals were inside. He was tempted to scream and get their attention, but he figured they would probably have attacked them as soon as they stood in front of it if they were inside.
"Easy, first lesson of anything is to feel its presence. You have it easier than me, and my dad had to pull a few strings and get a few people involved in constructing a box without any air that I could walk into and walk out of. I passed out so many times before I could finally be aware of it or, rather, the lack thereof. " Juba said with melancholy in his voice. Charlotte was gonna say that what he said sounded a bit like torture, but Juba cut him off.
"For you, we need to get you somewhere without any light, and I mean any, not even a glimmer of it. The easiest way is to find a dark cave and go so deep inside that we don't have any light. You might feel a tad uncomfortable, and you will feel uncomfortable. But with enough patience and awareness, you can feel it. Then we can start having you do stuff with it." Juba started walking inside, not giving him a chance to say anything. Charlotte begrudgingly followed; Charlotte was on his guard, unlike Juba, who seemed to whistle in a relaxed manner. Even as they went deeper into the cave and soon downwards, The light from the entrance slowly diminished till the two were in absolute darkness.
Charlotte began to feel uncomfortable as they went deeper into the cavern. Once the light was completely absent, it felt terrible. He was on edge, and they jumped slightly when he felt a hand rest on his shoulder.
"Alright, you're already feeling uneasy. Let's try something simple: release the light inside you. Don't try to give it shape or anything; just let it out." Charlotte tried to close their eyes and release the light; their only accomplishment was releasing their Chi. Juba's footsteps would slowly get further away until they went silent.
"Where are you goi-" Charlotte felt a blow hit him across the gut; he was momentarily surprised but quickly swung in the direction of the blow. He would hit nothing, as something akin to a blade scraped the side of his cheek, scratching him but not piercing the skin.
"Juba, I swear to god, you better explain yourself." Charlotte was tempted to summon his gauntlets and Armor, but he probably didn't need it to handle Juba. There wasn't a reply, but he knew Juba was still around despite not being able to hear their footsteps.
"Well, I told you how I learned. I learned not by taking my time but out of necessity. I had to learn how to summon the wind, or I would stay in that room till I suffocated and fell unconscious. I don't think trying to suffocate you will work; now let it out, or I'll keep hammering you with blows till I run out of Chi." As soon as he finished speaking, Charlotte could hear the sound of wind gushing to his right. Charlotte jumped to the right to try and avoid the attack, only to slam face-first into the cave wall and then be slammed into it once more as a blow followed right after.
He had a way of finding the absolute most abusing teachers, Charlotte wanted to complain, but he felt the wind gushing in front of him, signaling more attacks to come.