The next day, Nazzares went to the same place as yesterday, where he had been caught following master Vitjendra. Filled with excitement, he ran toward the forest. However, upon arriving, master Vitjendra was nowhere to be seen.
"master hasn't come yet."
While waiting, Zares practiced a random martial arts move, just striking the air.
"Hiiaaatt, hiaaattt!" he continued, looking upwards with a smile.
"Hahahahahahaha…" Zares laughed, lost in his thoughts.
Suddenly, master Vitjendra appeared beside him. "Turns out, you're just as foolish as he was," said master Vitjendra, observing Zares laughing alone in the middle of the forest.
"Hey!" called master Vitjendra.
"Wow, master! Since when were you here?" Zares asked, confused by his sudden appearance.
"Since earlier! Alright, are you ready to train today? I've found a good spot for our training," said master Vitjendra.
"Absolutely ready, master!" Zares answered enthusiastically.
"Good. Before we start, I'd like to ask you a few things on the way to the training ground," master Vitjendra said, as he began walking.
"Sure!" Zares responded eagerly.
Master Vitjendra asked many things about Zares: his age, his mother, his grandfather, and when he first discovered his powers. Zares, as the one being questioned, answered with great enthusiasm.
"You're still very young. You remind me of your grandfather. I met him when he was just a child."
"Grandfather? How old are you now, master?" Zares asked, curious.
"132 years old."
"Wow!!"
Zares was surprised to hear his Guru's confession that he was over 100 years old. During their journey, master Vitjendra also explained in detail about the Fatalis like himself and Zares.
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A FATALIS
Master Vitjendra slowly explained what a Fatalis is. A Fatalis is someone destined by bloodline, passed down from a mother who is also a Fatalis. Fatalis are just fragments of power that serve to balance the forces of the Earth.
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INHERENT MYSTIC TECHNIQUES
Master Vitjendra also explained that Fatalis are born with an inherent mystic technique. An inherent mystic technique can only be one type; no Fatalis has two powers at once, like Fire and Water. If it's fire, then it's only fire, and the same goes for others.
Then, they perform mudra (hand seals) as one of the prerequisites to activate their mystic techniques. There are many conditions to activate an inherent mystic technique, depending on how the technique works.
However, master Vitjendra was a bit surprised when Zares demonstrated his power, as Zares didn't use mudra (hand seals) to unleash his mystic technique, nor did he recite any mantras. A Fatalis cannot release their mystic technique without fulfilling the conditions, except when they take the binding oath.
"Binding oath?" Zares, not understanding what his Guru was explaining, asked. However, master Vitjendra told him not to worry about it, as he would eventually understand on his own.
Upon reaching the training location that Master Vitjendra wanted to show him, Zares realized it was a place he had visited before.
"Oh, this place. I often come here when I'm looking for medicinal plants. But sometimes, I also see strange animals and creatures, Master?"
Master Vitjendra replied that these were mystical creatures who avoided beings like humans and elves, or those similar to him. They wouldn't be disturbed nor would they disturb others. Without further ado, Master Vitjendra immediately began the training.
"Alright, let's start training," said Master Vitjendra, instructing Zares to stand in front of him and urging him to listen carefully to his explanation.
Master Vitjendra began explaining that every Fatalis is granted power from the will of the heavens, allowing them to directly access Mystical Energy (energi mistis) within themselves, which is an absolute requirement to use their inherent mystic technique.
The First Training: Walking on Water with Basic Mystic Energy
For the first training, Master Vitjendra demonstrated how he gathers mystic energy so that he can walk on water.
"Tap tap tap..." The sound of Master Vitjendra's footsteps echoed as he walked on the water. Nazzares, who was watching, was very impressed by what his master was doing.
"Wow!"
"Try doing what I just did."
"Alright, Master"
Nazzares began to mimic what his master had done, focusing on sensing the mystic energy within his body.
"Focus, feel the mystic energy in your body, Zares," Nazzares thought to himself as he attempted his first trial.
In the calmness, accompanied by the sound of the river and the gentle breeze, Nazzares closed his eyes and tried to focus.
After a few minutes, Nazzares could feel the mystic energy within his body. Master Vitjendra then instructed him to approach the river.
"Try, step on the water," Master Vitjendra said, keeping a close eye on him.
Nazzares cautiously stepped towards the river. Slowly, one of his feet touched the water and felt solid. He then stepped forward with the other foot and began walking on the water. He succeeded on his first attempt.
"Yeeaa... I did it, Master!" Nazzares cheered and jumped on the water.
Splash! Splash! Splash! The sound of Nazzares' joyous jumps on the river's surface filled the air.
Seeing his disciple's excitement, Master Vitjendra immediately reminded him not to get too carried away. Just because he was a Fatalis, it was easy for him to accomplish this. For all Fatalis, a successful first trial in basic training is a common thing.
---
The Second Training: Walking on a Vertical Surface
Next, Master Vitjendra demonstrated how to walk on a vertical surface. He then instructed his disciple to try it himself.
"Yup, look closely, you must unite your mystic energy with every surface," Master Vitjendra said while standing sideways on a large tree trunk. He then jumped down after demonstrating the technique.
"WUGH!" Master Vitjendra jumped and landed smoothly on the ground. Then he told his disciple, "Alright, now try it yourself."
"Okay!" Nazzares answered loudly.
Nazzares immediately gave it a try. Although he failed several times, he didn't give up and continued trying until he succeeded.
CRASH...!! He fell. "Damn!"
Master Vitjendra continued to observe him from behind and shouted, "Hey, feel your mystic energy first, don't rush your steps!" He reminded Nazzares that what he was doing was wrong.
"Alright!" Nazzares answered, focusing again. He thought to himself, "I hope this works."
Slowly, Nazzares began to match the stability of his steps and started walking on the vertical tree surface. On his first step, he struggled to balance his body.
"Atatatata, keep your balance."
However, after contemplating and focusing on his mystic energy, he began to take slow steps. With his body starting to sweat, Nazzares gradually increased his pace.
"Don't rush, focus on controlling your mystic energy," Master Vitjendra called out from below.
"Focus, Zares, focus," Nazzares told himself in his mind.
He continued to walk toward the top but slipped halfway because he lost focus in controlling his mystic energy. However, he quickly recovered and managed to reach the top.
"Master...!!!! I did it!" Nazzares shouted happily from the top of the tree.
Master Vitjendra smiled faintly, seeing that, and immediately told him to come down so they could move on to the next stage.
"Alright, next, perhaps it's better to train your physical strength to make you stronger. Seeing your condition, it looks like you're not used to hard work."
"Hehehe... I'm just the child of a healer, and my work doesn't involve heavy physical labor," Nazzares answered with a hint of embarrassment.
"I have to leave, there are matters I need to attend to. Try to improve your control over your mystic energy so that you can stay on the water longer and move freely on the vertical surfaces," Master Vitjendra instructed his disciple.
"Alright, Master. I will do it."
After Master Vitjendra left Nazzares alone at the training site, Nazzares continued his training, doing what his Guru had instructed, though with some difficulty. The basic training continued for the next five days, always under the watchful eye of his master, until Nazzares became accustomed to it.
To be continued...