Chapter 12 (Understanding)

  "I stood tall in the forest. My ears twitched at the smallest of movements. The sound of squirrel-like creatures skittering up trees; a nut crashing into a pile of leaves after falling from a branch. Chicks called for their mother to feed them, chirping hungrily in their nest. All was perfect in the forest. My home was secure, and I enjoyed being its guardian. Some creatures don’t belong in my domain; they only cause trouble and disrupt the flow of Arc. My horns purify this magnificent energy, and it, in turn, gives me power. I must hunt to grow stronger so I can protect my domain. I was a Black Wood Deer, the Guardian of the Forest.”

  I finished telling Yashir about my dream. He sat with a hand on his chin, gazing into the flickering flames of our fire. The scent of pine and burning wood hung in the cool air, and the crackle and pop of the fire were the only sounds besides the chirping crickets and the whisper of the wind through the canopy. The ground beneath us was a soft, uneven carpet of dried leaves and moss, and I traced the intricate patterns on a gnarled tree root with my finger.

  “Hmm, I’ve never heard of a Black Wood purifying through its horns before,” he said, finally breaking the silence. He didn’t look at me, his eyes still lost in thought.

  I felt a pang of defensiveness. “I could feel it. It felt the same as how we purify through our cores.”

  “Relax, child, I believe you,” he said, a small smile playing on his lips. He finally looked at me, his gaze softening. “It’s just… curious. Do you have a Gift?”

  The question caught me off guard. He was so direct, completely ignoring the taboo of asking such a personal question. I should have expected it, I guess.

  “I have three…” I said quietly, my voice almost lost to the sounds of the fire.

  “Three!” he exclaimed, his face practically glowing as he leaned in closer, his dark eyes wide. I flinched, startled by his sudden shift in energy. “Tell me, what are they?”

  “Uh. My first is Concealment, the second is Understanding, and the third is Infinity,” I rattled off, a nervous energy building in my chest. Despite my anxiety, his excitement was infectious.

  He nodded, a thoughtful look returning to his face. “Concealment is a pretty common Gift. It helps you sneak around, hide your true core level, and things like that as you purify it. Understanding is a bit rarer. I've only heard about a couple of people having it. Apparently, it lets you read Arc as if it's a ledger, which would explain your dream about the deer.”

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  “How is learning about the life of a deer supposed to help me?” I asked, placing my hands flat on the ground in front of me, frustrated by his cryptic explanation.

  He chuckled, the sound like dry leaves rustling. “You’re so short-sighted, child. There are people who would kill to have a power like that at their side. Myself included.”

  I shifted, nervously picking at a loose thread on my stitched shirt. “Okay, well, what makes it so good then?”

  “I don’t truthfully know…” he said, his face dead serious. My jaw went slack. He saw my reaction and raised a hand to stop me from speaking. “But there are many stories about people who possessed an Understanding of being able to do great things. Just think, Arc surrounds us, fills the world. How much do you think you could learn if you could understand what it has touched?”

  The thought sent a shiver down my spine and my chest tightened. The potential of such a gift was immense, and I still had another I knew nothing about.

  “And what about Infinity?” I asked, my heart beginning to pound with a mix of nerves and anticipation. After all the novels I’d read, this had to be my "op" ability, the one that could change the world.

  “No clue.” Yashir chuckled again, standing and stretching his arms over his head. “Let’s get to work.”

  After that first week, life in the forest with Yashir settled into a strange routine. The days blurred together as he continued his relentless training, teaching me everything he knew about Arc and its applications. We would spar, he would defeat me, and then we'd repeat the process. Each time, my body healed, becoming stronger, more resilient. Even though he was brutal in his teaching methods, Yashir was also strangely caring. He would hold me on nights when my past tormented my dreams, his presence offering a strange sense of comfort amidst the darkness.

  In those long days, I learned about the eastern kingdoms of Yugen, Mahalo, Dijik and Tybris. Apparently, the people of Mahalo have a similar complexion to my own, which is why Yashir mistook me for Maloan when we first met. As Mahalo and Zeffa share a border it's possible that I am part Maha too. However There are many Zeffans that share my complexion as the Yejan Desert spans across the two countries, although the majority of it lies within Mahalo and Dijik.

  Yugens had slightly more Asian and Middle Eastern appearances, like Yashir. Despite their different appearances, the Eastern Kingdoms had their individual languages but also shared the Imperial language Dijan from Dajik. Since I already knew Dijan, Yashir started teaching me Yugenese and Tybiran.

  He also taught me about the intricacies of Arc energy. Yashir was my mentor, my guide through this new world. He taught me to be aware of the rustle of leaves, the whispers of the wind, and the songs of birds, as they all revealed secrets of our surroundings. Despite my initial shock, I came to understand his eccentric teaching style. Every challenge he posed, every lesson he imparted, pushed me to grow.

  Weeks easily turned into months, and months into a year. My ability to “understand” didn't help much, since the purity of my core was so low. The most I could get was confusing and relatively useless facts about things that I killed. An ability that was more passive than active.

  Even still we hunted, foraged, and survived together in the heart of nature. I practiced channeling energy, refining my Arc Core under the guidance of Yashir. What he hadn't told me before is that an animal core doesn't do much the closer to your purity it is. Most of the animals we hunted were red to yellow cores, with the yellow cores being rather rare. My red core progress was slowly breaking into an orange, but I wasn’t able to do anything with my second or third core.

  The forest became our sanctuary, its depths echoing with the sounds of our training and the lessons Yashir shared.

  Through it all, I transformed. Physically, I became more resilient, my body adapting to the challenges of our daily life. Emotionally, I grew stronger, learning to control my fears and anxieties. My connection to Arc deepened, and I felt the energy within me responding more readily to my commands.

  Looking back, it was a period of intense growth and self-discovery. Yashir's harsh methods had toughened me, molding me into someone capable of facing the challenges of the world. The forest had become more than just our refuge; it was the crucible where my strength was forged.