Unsteady Tides

*3rd person POV*

The air tenses and folds as something speeds by with force.

*Krakoom*

It crashes into a rock pillar, bouncing off as the pillar topples and it falls upon another one, setting off a chain of crushing pillars as tumbling and crashing in a deafening chorus of rock and stone.

"Gerrgghh!!"

Sura's body makes a collision with another pillar top as she rolls herself back up. Scratches and bruises marked themselves on her body.

*Huff huff*

"I have to say, you were a bit better before. You're too quick to attack, be patient and calm yourself."

Knocked down from a simple strike, what's wrong with me? Thought Sura. Her fist comes down onto the pillar, cracking it in frustration before rushing at Kyuu-san. An inflamed Saffron first meets blazing spiritual energy as Sura charges through the blast. Her attack forces rock and stone to shatter and explode as it lands where Kyuu-san once stood.

Shards of debris break upon Kyuu-san's imbued body as she swerves from the attack, her fiery eyes unflinching against the dust of the wasteland. A kick of whirlwind jets towards Kyuu-san as she weaves through explosive pressure of Sura's flurry of punches… creating a storm of its own on this sandstorm planet.

There! A trail of blue fire circles behind Sura, Kyuu-san… flexing her arm, Sura immediately pulls back with a swing as she spins around unleashing an arc of Saffron fire, consuming and burning the air, her pupils no longer carrying a sense of rhythm nor calmness.

A hand emerges through the Saffron as Kyuu-san ducks… palm pressed against Sura's chest, she tries to grab the hand before it unleashes a concussive quanta blast. Sura's upper body surges back as she skids back.

"Grrrrr!!"

Feet grinding stone as she pushed back, Sura stood her ground through sheer anger as Kyuu-san charged.

"Ragh!!"

Sura blindly launches her fist only to be swiftly side-stepped, feeling her arm deflected and blocked. Her vision locks blindly on Kyuu-san, suddenly jars and snaps to the side as a strike hits her…

Damn it!! Why can't I concentrate… this overwhelming energy inside me… I can't focus!! Why?! Enraged, Sura growls and pushes back the strike before launching another, but before it can come out, she feels a pain travel up her stomach as the kick sends her flying back. Landing on her back… the power in her starts to slow down as fatigue comes over Sura.

*Huff….huff.*

As it goes away, she suddenly feels her head clear more… staring up at the thundering storms far above, it felt like those were taking place in her head.

"Every time you try to use more of your primordial powers… you start to lose control, lose focus, and rhythm. More power means nothing if you don't even know what you are doing."

Sura feels her body lifted and carried as Kyuu-san picks her up, a vine grips onto a nearby arch, and Mokuren swings over. Cradling Sura in vines, Mokuren heals her as green light pulses through… almost immediately, the wound and scratches, bruises fade away.

*Sura's POV*

The pain melts away, and my fist loosens… I can't control it. It's hard, what can I even do?

*Click… hiss….*

The rings on my arm sigh along with me... good thing it works well. What good is this power if I can't even control it? Several small, black cubs floating in a string as it forms back together into a matrix.

"Based on some basic energy scans... Kyuu-san's right. Every time you summon more primordial energy, you start to lose yourself. Continued training can help, but I imagine perhaps a different mental method can better help you calm down more in the meanwhile."

Mokuren looks worriedly at me, a slight pulse of green light around her. Her gi still slapping in the wind, Kyuu-san sits down, her scruff puffing in and out as she breathes in the arid air.

"About time to head back, it's late noon."

The portal is still brimming and open, it sits a distance away on a massive pillar we arrived on… I see horns suddenly poke through before smoldering eyes greet mine.

"Hello beautiful lilies, just checking in on you peeps!!"

Shouts Klara-san. Together, we take the stomach upsetting trip back to planet Aurora. I bid farewell to the destroyed planets and the surreal, fallen worlds before me... it's still confusing how this dimension was created. I wonder who or what did?

Coming back to the center of the training ground, I see sunny blue skies and cool air. Mokuren stretches her arms as she takes a deep breath in, relieved to be back from that nightmare planet. A cloud of dust and sand poofs out from Kyuu-san's tail as she pats it and pats her fur. Checking the matrix on her wrist, she nods at me.

"I have to stay behind to help monitor the training and to help Wukong catch up on lessons. Klara and I also need to close down the dojo. You know the way home, brat?"

"I do!"

"Alright then, Mokuren, do you mind watching her on the way home?"

Eh?

"I can handle myself geez. I just have to walk home, that's it! I'm not a little child!"

Kyuu-san raises an eyebrow at me.

"I meant not a naughty little child."

Her eyebrow remains raised. How mean! I feel hands on my shoulders.

"Come on Kyui, she can do it. It's just walking home, you know how to be responsible right?"

Mokuren shakes my ears a bit. I nod confidently with a hmph! Kyuu-san face palms and groans…

"Fiinee… but you better head straight home and not cause any trouble ok?"

With that, I hope my way out of the dojo waving goodbyes to all the students. As I'm leaving, I hear Kyuu-san whisper.

"She's totally going to mess around, I should've asked you to watch and follow her… you always have a way of convincing me Mokuren."

Down the streets, I go! Passing mesmerizing shrines with lit candles that smelled of ocean and buildings of beautiful wood. I relive the first time I rushed here, the beautiful tiled roofs, and buildings gave a pleasant, natural look. Crafted from nature itself.

A centaur trod towards me and didn't notice, is it because I'm short? I quickly duck and pass under her legs. A couple of deer people walk by with ornate rings of horns accessorized with rings and shiny ornaments… so cool! Taking the path down to the… right? It was right… right? Down the path I go, I take off the getas and finally let my bare feet experience the long-missed ground. Feeling the dirt underneath me was bliss, no more getas, and no more weird tripping flip flops!

Skipping on my way, a sudden vibrant sound seems to pluck at my heart as a tickling sensation tugs at me. A wave of strange elation and nostalgia seems to overtake me as I look around almost desperately for the source. The chatter, the sounds of walking, all blend into ambient noise as the series of musical notes plays again in a little tune.

There it is again! Music! Each strum, each note sent, warm touches down my spine… motivating me to find the source. My ears desperately search for the sound and I twirl around… it's gone… and in front of me is some kind of store. It was between other buildings, large window planes served as the front wall which peered into the store. Plastered on a giant wooden carving of a guitar was the store's name:

"Saraswati's Guitar."

A guitar store? There were lots of guitars of all kinds displayed at the front for passersby to see. Mounted like crowning jewels… in fact, I'll take a guitar over jewels any day! What's so cool about jewels anyways?

I feel a natural draw to the door, pushing away Kyuu-san's warning, I also push the door open, I mean… Kyuu-san did say this would happen, right? No point in proving her wrong hehe..

The bells on the door jingle and dingle welcome me into the store. There was no one in here, not a soul to be heard. The light bounced off the specks of dust filtered by the sunlight through the glass walls.

Looking up, made of peerless, smooth wood and metal engraved in beautiful lettering signed "Sara", the guitars were suspended from the ceiling, dazzling like stars. Were they floating? I squint a little closer… and see the light reflect off a thin line… spiderweb?

"Boo!"

"WAH!!!"

I jumped up and hit my head on the ceiling… hearing a crack.

"My ceiling! Eh well… what I get I guess."

Why does everyone keep scaring me?! I whip around and see myself through six pearl black eyes… a tiny crimson iris within each as it seemed to search me up and down. Hanging upside down from the ceiling, her legs clack down onto the wooden floor.

Hairless, smooth chitin legs, sharp, click against the ground in a multitude of taps. A carriage of smooth, spherical body was connected to her upper torso. The glazed-over, reflective black chitin transitions to pale, light blue skin from lower to the upper torso.

"Hello, little customer! My name is Saraswati, welcome to my guitar shop!"

Her voice carried a slight chitter and jitter, yet was enthusiastic and resounding. A spider lady!! I've never seen one before! Her arm had chitin-like grows and her hands were jointed with sharp claws… so smooth, and she had four arms. Before I knew it… my hands were on her arm, feeling her carapace, I quickly pulled my hands back.

"Whoops! Sorry…"

I fidget behind my back. Saraswati chuckles as all 6 of her eyes flicker and her arachnid mandibles trailing slight saliva open into 3 parts.

"It's alright! In fact, you're not scared of me?"

"Scared? Why would I be?"

Her six red irises widen as she flings me with her jointed arms onto her abdomen excitedly… rapidly tapping the floor with her legs.

"Haha!! I can't believe it! Someone doesn't see me as scary! Welcome to the spider express train!"

"Huh? Woah!"

She starts crawling around the ceiling and floor in our little tour of her shop… a veil of white cotton covers my face as I feel my bare bottom. Suddenly my skirt flips back down and she descends.

"Sorry about that! Sorry! I'm just so excited! Finally! Someone who doesn't see me as scary or someone who wants to devour them!"

With a thrust of her abdomen, she throws me off her and catches me with her arms, and hugs me… pressing my face into her breasts that were covered by chitin armor… is the armor her clothes? She feels a bit cold… we finally part and I can see a wide ear-to-ear smile, literally, on her face. She abruptly puts me down and pats down her chitin armor and body, brushing off some dust as if it were clothes.

"Sorry again! That was no way to treat a customer! You seem a bit young, what brings you here?"

Wait hang on...

"if you weren't trying to be scary, why did you scare me?"

Saraswati hangs a guilty smile on face.

"Well at one point I gave up and just thought, might as well have fun scaring them right? Hehe...heh."

I smooth out my hair and look at her properly, she had short hair down to her chin with streaks of blue and silver in them. Strapped around her back, was a guitar… black like her chitin armor with zig-zags of burning red that breathed fires of color on the surface.

"Oh, this? You like it?"

Grabbing the guitar by its neck and body, Saraswati swings the guitar, looping it around her chest before catching it. She raises her two hands dramatically in the air, pausing… I anxiously watch as Sarawasti smiles and with the graceful arc, violet blood quanta tinged her fingers as she strikes the guitar…

A series of echoing, vibrating musical strums sends shivers down my spine as the guitar sings by the masterful hand. Resonating my soul… a wave of nostalgia hits me and I feel a growing, excited warmth inside me. I rush towards her, eyes beaming that glorious light of hope and excitement.

"This was the sound I heard!! I followed it here! Was it you?! That's so awesome!!"

Saraswati's smile grew wider and her mandibles opened in pure elation.

"Indeed it was me! I was playing just outside trying to attract customers… but all I did was scare them away. That and well… guitars aren't something people here are used to. And who would want to take lessons with a creepy spider girl like me right?"

She sighs and leans back onto a shelf. Creepy?

"I don't think you're creepy, I think you're cool and beautiful for being able to play the guitar so well… and spiders are cool hehe."

I thought Sarawasti was gonna start bawling as tears welled on all six eyes.

"Why can't everyone be like you!"

She grabs onto me and hugs me again, shaking me around like she's hugging a doll. Finally putting me down… I ask.

"Ms. Sarawasti… can you teach me how to play a guitar?"

Hands on her chin, Sarawasti's other two hands pluck the guitar, playing a little tune.

"Do you have money?"

"Money?"

"Oh… huh."

She stops playing, and moves close to me, her six eyes inspecting me as she lifts my arm, feels my skin… her cold, pointy fingers trailing my skin in an odd sensation.

"Hmmm… you're real cute! How about this? You become my store's mascot every once in a while and I'll teach you how to play the guitar in return! Surely nobody will be scared by you!"

Become this store's mascot?

"What do I do?"

"Well, to help attract people to the world of guitars!! You can stand outside real cutesy like and hold a guitar and deliver a few lines."

Hmmm… will it interfere with my training? Training ends in the afternoon… and I have only a few hours before I need to get back home to Mom for dinner. Buuut... the excitement in my heart I can't ignore!

"I accept!"

Saraswati squeals.

"Awesome! Since I… don't have anyone to teach besides you… it's up to you to decide when the lesson takes place."

But how many lessons should I get? Am I ready? How long? The petals in my dress flap and move around in ponderance, feeling the velvet petals patting my back… I rub my cheeks to try to think of something. Saraswati suggests something to me when she takes notice.

"Confused? Hmmm… how about 2 times a week you come over and I teach you for a few hours? Or you could come every day really, but how about this so far to see if you enjoy it?"

That works! Awesome! I can learn music! A guitar! Maybe I can one day play a little song to make fun of Kyuu-san... the brilliant, scheming idea pops into my mind as I give my answer.

"Sure!"