Part 36

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Folding his arms across his chest, Sun Ce watched the orphan's training from a safe distance. His mother and sister had warned him that the boy still had very little control over his powers and any training around him would turn into a fight for survival. Giggling into the palm of her hand, Mrs Min narrated how she herself had once tried to get close to the boy while conquering the land.

-Ara-ara. I was so excited and agitated, wading through all those stone stakes that tried to pierce me.

My mother's speech left new childhood traumas in the heir's mind. Without giving any importance to the ambiguity, Ce went to the training ground to see for himself Guan Yu's progress.

Just after entering the training field, he had to fend off a couple of small projectiles that threatened to pierce the Viceroy's son's skull. Shifting his gaze to the culprit, Qie stared in shock at the bacchanalia that was going on around him. Sliding on the rock like ice, Teacher Yu circled around the child, throwing boulders and whole layers of soil at him. In response, the boy chopped the stones with his glaive or created obstacles in the way of enemy magic. In parallel, however, every movement of Yu released in all directions many projectiles and lines of stone stakes.

Fully concentrated on defence, the former cadet almost did not control the elements that under the pressure of his power was throwing in all directions. Not taking any chances, Tse moved further away, standing within the trees that had a couple of signs hanging on them.

'While classes are in progress, do not approach the training ground.'

Running his finger along a chip in the bark of a mighty plant, the heir surveyed the forest surrounding the field. All the bushes, flowers and flimsy trees had been destroyed by tonnes of earth. Apart from the main entrance to the range, the improvised walls of tree debris mixed with stones surrounded the site on all sides.

-You're getting more confident.

Muttering to himself, Tse looked at the changed junior with surprise. Just like the element he was learning, Yuu was becoming harder and more stubborn. Even his facial features slowly began to sharpen, becoming harder and straighter.

When the master and his disciple were about to take a break, Qie left the temporary shelter. Heading directly to Yui, he unsheathed his spear, not wanting to waste time talking. Their blades would do the talking for them.

Yui's measured life flowed easily. Accustomed to his training regime, he was able to carve out a couple of free hours for himself when the OWLs family or Wenling didn't call him to spar.

The first thing the orphan did was visit his old friend Wen Chou. Waiting for his uncle to leave his workplace and head home, Yu spoofed the man at the school's exit. Padou's tight embrace nearly broke every bone in the teenager's body. Yuu seemed to have grown bigger and broader in the shoulders since their last meeting, but the warehouse owner was not sitting still either. The bulky potbelly was now too big for two people to grasp. And the man's arms were now like the trunks of the young trees that surrounded the training ground in the manor.

After agreeing to resume their meetings, Yu managed to get a pass to enter the school grounds accompanied by guards. Although right now Wen Chou couldn't keep them company, but the fat uncle insisted on having a cup of tea to hear some stories. A food-rich table and many most unusual delicacies greeted Yu. There were even a few national dishes from the Southern Water Tribe. Abundant sea creepers and other aquatic life littered the table. Fruits and sweets from the metropolis, as well as many treats, something only made in the colonies. The mixture of such different cultures of the two nations was strongly reflected in the food.

A pleasant heart-to-heart conversation left the best impressions. Padu talked a lot about his nephew's success, not hiding his sincere joy. According to the warehouse owner, Chou's skills had become many times better. After Yu's departure, the boy devoted all his free time to fencing, becoming better time after time. Mastering the art of swordsmanship at a rapid pace, Chou refused to go to a special class. When asked a fair question about the reason for his refusal, Yu received an instant reply.

-Wen Chou's talents have been noticed by important people. If he continued like this, he would be in the entourage of the Yuan family's heir, Young Master Shao.

A familiar name popped up in the orphan's mind. The brother of his old acquaintance Shu, who had attended the opening of the school. His first impressions of Yuan Shu's brother were not the best, and his former classmate had not said anything good about the man. Not wanting to disappoint the enthusiastic man, Yu smiled cheerfully, wagering with joy.

-Oh wow, I thought Mr Shao was in Lu Yang now.

-Whenever, he often travels between colonies,' Padou took a sip of tea and squeezed his eyes shut in pleasure, 'he must be looking out for loyal men.

That was the end of their serious conversation. After discussing a few gossipy tidbits about teachers and schoolchildren, they ended the evening with a simple meal. Padou's stories about the Water Tribe's cuisine elicited nauseous reactions. These people ate whatever they could find in the icy wilderness and the boy didn't blame them for it, but he refused to eat sea creatures himself. Not wanting to overstay his welcome, Yu politely bid farewell to the kind Uncle Chou and departed back to the manor.

The entire next year passed in a similar fashion. Improving his skills and practising sparring with his acquaintances. Each day Master Kai paid more and more attention to the subtle manipulations of the elements. According to the old teacher, there was already enough naked power in Yui, all that was left was to work on control.

-You will have to control each stone so that they all move in their own path without hitting the others.

-I understand, Master Kai.

Sitting in a meditation pose, Yu let the stones slowly build up speed. With each passing second, they turned into blurred lines. Trying to lift a few more into the air, the boy kept losing concentration. Rubble began to fly in a single row, or flew in all directions.

The first success with three stones remained an insurmountable result. Further increasing the difficulty of the exercise always resulted in failure. Day after day, Yu devoted at least a couple of hours to the exercise to increase his control, but the result didn't get any better.

Today was no different from any other day. The bright midday sun was blinding his eyes, and the dry wind was driving the hot air in lazy gusts, making it worse. Feeling dry and thirsty on his tongue, the teenager tried desperately to do better, but only increased the speed of the stones more.

-You have to calm down, Yuu.

-But I just don't get it,' the boy's eyes widened and he watched in indignation as Kai repeated the exercise with a dozen stones at once, 'the harder I try, the worse I get.

Chewing on his weathered lips, the teacher pulled a flask of water from behind his back. In a couple of movements, the old man created a small stone hole the size of his palm. Pouring out the contents of the flask, he watched the waves, occasionally waving his hand to increase the vibrations beneath the hole. With his actions, the man had the student's full attention, hiding his manipulations of the earth from the boy.

-Your thoughts are like circles on the water,' Kai stopped the vibrations and touched the centre of the puddle with his finger, creating a small wave that travelled to the edges of the puddle and calmed the churning water, 'in excitement, clarity disappears, but if you let the waves calm down, the answer becomes obvious.

Looking sceptically into his mentor's sly eyes, Yuu swept his hand over the puddle, causing new vibrations and waves.

-Not your best judgement, master.

-Khem... I got the old man, but I got the idea right. You're too nervous, that's all. Okay, I think we'll call it a day, it's getting too hot and we don't have any more water.

Not listening to his student's indignant exclamation, Kai rose to his feet and went to rest. Grinning victoriously, he left the field to Yui's shouts that carried to his back. 'It really is too hot today.'

After seeing the teacher off with a glance, the boy shook his head understandingly. Sitting under the scorching sun was something he was used to, but usually all training sessions were accompanied by a pleasant breeze filled with the moisture of the river. The refreshing breezes that came to them from the Pona were energising, helping him to give his best.

As he exposed his face to the sun's merciless heat, Yuu had to admit that the master's ploy was justified. Washing himself with the rapidly evaporating water, the teenager picked up his trusty halberd. With a dozen swings, he created a stone ledge that towered above all the trees. Without taking his feet off the ground, the boy slid up the created mountain. Only a couple of seconds of movement and all his clothes were soaked through. Stopping at the top, Yu felt the echoes of the wind that came from the river.

-It'll be better here...

Wiping drops of sweat off his face and cursing the sun being so bright, Yu started his training. For a few minutes, the orphan made the rocks float around. Periodically glancing at the drying puddle and starting again after each failure. Calming his mind and practically falling asleep, Yuu felt a growing irritation.

-Dumb rocks, stupid earth magic.... Can't you just take off?!

Grumbling to himself, he tried to spin the stones again, but he got too carried away and one of them flew into the boy's forehead.

-Aaagrrrrrr...

Growling like a beast, Yuu threw the stones in different directions with a wave of his hands. With a long yawn and a frown, the boy tried to remember the Yuyang archers' instructions on how to calm his heart and relax while hunting or sitting in an ambush. But all that was in his mind was Zhang Yan's mockery and taunts. While going over a more suitable option in his head, Yu didn't notice himself as he wrapped the stones over his palm. Obeying the movement of his fingers, the rubble flew in a chaotic pattern, ignoring each other and not colliding.

Looking in any direction other than his hand, the teenager muttered curses at everyone involved in his life. The mood was bouncing in different directions, clashing with self-discipline and banal respect for the people involved with him.

When Yuu did notice the miracle above his palm, he shouted with joy and instantly threw off his concentration, sending half of the stones into his face. Falling down the mountain, the boy spun on his axis, trying to catch on to something, but failed miserably.

Landing face down near a puddle and picking up all the bumps and rocks along the way, Yuu rolled over onto his stomach, hiding his eyes from the sun. The puddle glistened in front of his eyes, light puffs of vapour billowing from it. With his head bowed incomprehensibly, the boy crawled closer, determined to check what was wrong.

At the bottom of the small hole lay one of the stones he used for training. Hidden in the shadow of the ledge Yui had created, the puddle was only half evaporated. Reaching his hand into the water, he felt that it was very hot, much warmer than it should be. Pulling the rock out of the water, the boy noticed how it was covered in cracks. Practically falling apart in his hands, the pebble still held warmth.

-Did it get so hot in the sun?