Problem with the Flow

"Hey Anna! How are you doing!?... Wha… What is that creature!?", a familiar voice came from afar. "Hey Tara! Don't worry about that now! Come over, I have someone to introduce!", I exclaimed back. Tara was much more interested in Frosty, than anything else. I couldn't blame her though, Frosty was pretty much one of a kind in the North. She quickly got off of her Taurus, then grabbed me for a private chat.

"Hey, hey, what the hell is that creature?… That man… He looks like a Human but that arm... A friend of your mom or something?", she asked, visibly shocked. "That's my father and that creature over there is Frosty, my father's companion", I replied while puffing out my chest. Tara's face changed, "Your.. Your father? You mean?…". "Yep, he is back… Though what you see over there is just his illusion, the real one is behind the workshop… Dad!", I exclaimed. Tara wasn't sure what to do with herself. She looked lost, like a small animal far away from home.

Father joined us shortly after, then introduced himself, "Nice to meet you, I'm Anna's father, Nex". Tara dropped to her knee suddenly, and refused to budge. "Hey, stand up will you? There's no need for that", father helped her up before asking, "You are not so bad, kid. How old are you?". "I'm nineteen years old, sir", Tara replied respectfully. "Heh, the North indeed changed a bit. Great job reaching your Outer Limits stage, I'm sure it wasn't easy on you. Anyway, call me over once you're done chatting. I might be able to help you out a bit", he added before heading back to his garden.

"Tara… Hey! Tara, wake up!", I nudged her. "Oh, sorry. I was lost in my thoughts… Wow, your father is so cool!", she exclaimed. "I'm a bit angry though… You knew who my father was. With your tendency of blabbering about anything, I'm more surprised you managed to keep that away from me", I added. "Yea, that was the hardest thing. The fear of punishment kept me away from saying anything though", she explained.

"Anyway, your father is a legend in the North! He trained some of our warriors, and introduced shields to them. That is why we use shields now. Moreover, your father and master Ama built those Scorpions in Sedon. They were used during the war of the North. Without them, Sedon would perish… Or so I heard", she added enthusiastically.

"Yes, I know. He is great, isn't he?", I gloated a bit. "He's been away for so many years, I have to tell master Ulon and others about it. There will be loads of people visiting you guys, once they learn of your father's return", she said. 'Yea, that's exactly what I'm against… Maybe dad is right, being an Emperor is a pain', I thought. "By the way, what about our little business? I mean, you are a princess after all, so such a thing is probably of no interest to you anymore", Tara asked.

"Have you become delusional? We will continue as planned. I want to earn my own money, not depend on my parents. Besides, I'm still me, Anna. Nothing's changed, we are friends like always", I replied. "Yes, princess", Tara replied teasingly. "Drop it, or I'll have you executed", I replied with a grin. "Somehow, I don't doubt it…", she replied quietly.

She then passed me a few sculptures, and asked about the progress. "I'm trying to catch up. My dad's return messed my whole schedule up. Don't worry though, I'm still working on everything", I reassured her. "Great to hear, I'll leave it to you then… Now, your dad said he could help me... I'm a bit embarrassed to go ask him myself… Could you perhaps… You know?", Tara asked.

"Heh, he already heard what we said probably… Am I right, dad?!", I called out. "Anna, do you think I'll listen in on your conversation like that? You don't trust your own father?", father said while leaving his garden to join us again. "Yea, I know you listened since I'm your daughter. I'd listen as well, don't try to hide it", I replied. My mother's laughter came from the house, "Hehe, Nex you old fool. Trying to deceive your own daughter. She's more like you in that regard". "Yea, yea, I wonder who taught her such… Bam!", something slammed the ground in front of my father, before he could finish.

The item my mother threw at him that time, was or rather used to be a ladle. Father simply stepped over it while adding, "Alright Tara, come over here for a minute". "There seem to be some problems with your energy flow, am I right?", he then asked. "Y… Yes, how can you know that, sir?", Tara replied, stunned. "Just call me uncle. Well, I'm a doctor. It's kind of my job to see such things. I'm going to check your body, so relax. It's not going to take long", he explained before proceeding to examine Tara.

"...Yea, it's because your pressure points are naturally smaller. Your energy flow is restricted, and this problem persists from a young age, right? No wonder Ulon couldn't help you. This requires good knowledge of pressure points, and he doesn't have that", father concluded. "I thought this was normal, since I'm not a male. Though I didn't bother anyone about it. I figured that trying harder was the way to go", she said.

"Haha, your body is really strong thanks to that. Though whether you are a male or female, it shouldn't make that much difference… I can fix that, but it will be very painful", father added. "Sir!... Uncle, does that mean I will get stronger?", Tara asked both excited, and shocked. "Well, yes. I'm actually amazed you reached the Outer Limits stage, despite your pressure points being in such a state. Though let me remind you, this will hurt a lot", he reminded her.

Tara shook her head, then agreed to my father's treatment with clear determination on her face. "Alright, if you are ready, we can begin. Just try to deal with the pain", he replied then extended his left hand towards Tara. "Pak, Pak, Pak, Pak...", father's hand looked motionless to me, but Tara's body released multitudes of sounds. Father's movements were so fast, he was done in a few seconds, but that wasn't the end. Tara's body began swelling up from head to toe. Her face expressed intense pain, while sweat slowly formed on her forehead and tears rolled down her eyes. She couldn't keep it in any longer, her painful screams reverberated throughout the area. "Don't give up, you are a strong girl. Just a bit longer", father gave her words of encouragement.

Tara tried really hard, but her agonizing screams didn't stop. "Dad… maybe we should stop this?", I asked worriedly. "Believe in your friend, she is strong. She can get through this", he replied while staring at Tara. Finally, after what seemed like eternity, father did something. "Pak, Pak, Pak, Pak, Pak…", the sounds came out of Tara's body once more. Her painful screams ceased, but mostly because she fell unconscious.

"Anna, can you open the doors for me? We need to let her rest a bit", father said while picking her up. I rushed to get the doors, then escorted them to my room. "Will she be alright? Did you succeed?", I asked. "Anna, I wouldn't kill your friend. You need to have a bit more faith in your dad, you know? Anyway. Here, take this. I'll let you apply this medicine in private. Remember to apply it all over her body, this will help her recover", he replied while handing me two bottles of some sort of liquid.

One father left my room, I took Tara's clothes off then applied medicine all over her body. The swelling was slowly receding, which had to be a good sign. Leaving Tara alone, I joined my parents just outside the house. Of course, they were already glued to each other, sitting on a bench father made. "Wanna join us?", he asked. "Unlike you, I have loads of stuff to do. I'll be inside, working on my Formations".

After sorting through the sculptures Tara brought, I realised there were more unique ones, rather than the usual style. 'That's actually very good for our profits, though more work for me… I will start with the easier ones first', I decided. The usual colour changes and whatnot were the best for such generic sculptures. Though the unique ones would receive better treatment.

We had a small forest-like sculpture, for which I decided to use a new Formation. New in a sense that I haven't used it before. That was the fragrance Formation. Though I couldn't make the sculpture smell like beautiful flowers, I could intensify the smell of fresh wood. Other unique sculptures would get similar treatment, if they depicted nature. Other than that, I'd add a glow or very small spatial Formation. Just to make those things more useful and unique.

"Anna, it's getting late. Leave that for tomorrow", father said. "Oh, I forgot myself, hehe. Happens sometimes when I focus too much. Anyway, how's Tara? Did she wake up?", I asked. "Yea, I already checked up on her. She needs more rest, but go visit her", father replied. Since Tara woke up already, it was a good idea to pay her a visit.

"Hey, how do you feel?", I asked Tara. "Not that great. Everything hurts me, and my head is spinning. Though, it could've been worse. Your father told me to stay for a few days, just to make sure everything's alright", she replied. 'I don't mind, it's just that, where will I sleep?', I asked myself, "Anyway, get some rest. Have you eaten?", I added. "Yea, I'm fine. I'll see you tomorrow then. Good night", she replied.

"Dad, where am I supposed to sleep?", I inquired. "I made a bed for you in the workshop. It's for a few days anyway", he replied as if that wasn't weird. "Why don't you sleep there, while I sleep with mom?", I asked. "Sweetie, that's our bed. Besides, it's only for a few days. Tara's also your friend, right?", mother argued instead. 'Somehow, I don't think that's the reason', I thought but gave up in the end and went to sleep in the workshop.

"Ugh… My whole body hurts…". The morning didn't start so great for me. My muscles and back hurt a lot. "How can you even make such an uncomfortable bed?', I asked myself. Before leaving for breakfast, I assumed the pose father told me to do everyday. Though my body hurt all over, I managed to stay in that pose for a few more seconds than before. Though not much, there were clear improvements. Especially since my body hurt.

Back home, it came as no surprise that my parents and Tara were already enjoying their breakfast. I decided to simply ignore that, and asked Tara how she felt instead. "I wouldn't say great, but not that bad either. Uncle's medicine works really well, I feel little to no pain, after smearing myself in the morning", she replied.

"That means you'll recover soon, great. Anyway, there's loads of unique sculptures this time. Together with the paintings and whatever else I got left, it will take a while to finish. I'd say two weeks at least. I should be able to create most of them before you leave though", I added. "Take your time, there's no rush yet. I'll sell whatever you hand me", she assured me.

"Anna, why don't you guys go together?", father asked. "Huh? Well, mother said I can't", though something felt off when father asked that. "That was in the past, sweetie. You've reached the Outer Limits stage. Moreover, Tara will be there as well. Both of you are plenty strong to travel once in a while", mother added.

"Wait! You reached the Outer Limits stage already? Since when?", Tara exclaimed. "I'll tell you later. Anyway, I'm fine. Tara can deal with it, there's no need for both of us to go", I replied. "You don't have to be shy, Anna. Didn't you want to travel with your friends more?", mother tried to convince me. "I'm fine. I'll just stay at home, practice my skills and make some Formations. You know, the usual stuff", I declined again.

I wasn't stupid. My mother desired for me to disappear, and have my father to herself. I wouldn't allow that so easily. She gave up trying to convince me, and looked at my father for some help. He didn't seem eager to get involved with that argument.

"Anyway!...", father exclaimed before continuing, "Anna, remember to practice the control of your energy. This is very crucial for you, since you chose to follow the path of Formations". Even I had to admit, that change of topic was really forced. Though he was right. Without a proper control of my energy, drawing the Runes would be difficult if not impossible. "I know, dad. Anyway, can I borrow your illusion? I want to practice my sword now", I replied. "Sure", he agreed before a copy of him appeared. "That is so cool!", Tara exclaimed. "Yea, whatever. Come on father number two, let's get some practice in", I said, a bit annoyed.