A Lesson on Jades: Chapter 1

River stood staring at a green pile of fragments on the floor for a moment, her eyes wide open. Her eyes looked like they were bigger than those round glasses she always wears at that moment.

"Our money..." River muttered out, distraught. "It's gone... My books..."

"You know, River, money isn't everything."

Xander was looking off the window with a distant look in his eyes, staring at a green light in the distance. He reached out his hand and grabbed the empty air in front of him. "I once knew a man who stared at a green light in the distance. He was rich, too rich if you ask me, but he lost what was most precious to him: the girl he loved."

River slowly wrenched her head away from the broken Jade and faced it toward the peaceful body of her brother. Right after the Jade broke, he had walked away from the mess and had his hands held behind his back.

"We all dream of something more. Dreaming of wealth. Dreaming of success. But it's not about money. It's about the harmony of the soul. It's about spiritual wealth. Jades aren't everything. Money isn't everything. It's family, River." Xander turned toward Jade and placed a hand against his breast, a tear in his eye. "Love your family. They are the greatest treasure in the world."

"Now River, bring it in. It's you and me against the cruel reality of the world" Xander opened up his arms expectantly.

The last thing Xander saw was a small fist of a girl heading directly toward his chin. The last thing he felt before losing consciousness was the ground moving away from him.

"It's fine, River. Ow." Xander reassured as he knelt on the ground. "Did you have to hit me so hard?"

It was morning now. River had apparently decided to retire to bed after hitting her brother. Xander slept on the ground that night. The shining sun passed through the window and bounced off of Xander's pale body who was holding his head.

"Explain. Now." River glared at the sorry figure on the floor on her throne (a.k.a. the recliner where she usually read her books). She was cleaning her glasses with a cleaning cloth as she looked with disgust at her brother.

She could pass for one of the crime lords down the layers. Scary.

"How much do you know about Jades and our kingdom?" Xander asked as he stretched his back and arms. His face suddenly turned more serious as he stared into his boss's eyes.

"Are you serious?"

"Just tell me. Everyone knows it, but I want to judge your knowledge."

River sighed and pushed her glasses back onto her face. She recited from memory,

"Jades are the sole Gift that God gave to humanity after Principle Savant Veritas reached his understanding of divinity. God, infuriated at humanity's attempt to reach godhood, took away the progress of mankind, but granted the ability for humanity to utilize phenomena."

"After reaching a certain level of knowledge on a subject, a Jade will materialize inside of a person, gathered from the unconscious understanding, and a certain red mark will appear on a person above their waist. The Jade acts a medium for a person to interact with the world with what they realize. Specialties are what a person understands and what they have to study"

"By bringing a physical form of understanding into reality, the thoughts and ideas of the individual can be superimposed onto the real world if they can think of the conditions for a manipulation to happen. By citing their manipulation with key words, the mental image is funneled into the materialization of understanding and is, in turn, materialized in of itself. Distances can become shorter. Mirrors can suddenly distort and warp. The collective unconscious can be made to avert their eyes. Food suddenly turned into poison. Lights can suddenly appear"

"Specialties can be anything, and their power is only limited by the human brain. However, because of the power of Jades, a hard hereditary system was put in place soon after the first Jades came about to preserve knowledge and thus consolidate power, and thus the world we have today."

"Look who paid attention in school. You get an A plus from your older brother." Xander smiled as he praised River intensely.

"Shut it. Ask anyone on the streets and they could do the same. What's your point" River crossed her legs as she leered at Xander on the floor.

"Unfortunately, that's all the understanding of Jades that comes from mandatory education. Now, it's time for you to listen to your expert older brother." Xander stated firmly as he stood up from the ground and grabbed some of River's old glasses off the kitchen counter confidently

"You know wearing glasses doesn't make you any smarter. You're just making yourself look stupider by wearing them", River insulted but was still listening intently. She was, after all, a person of extreme curiosity. A person most deserving of a Jade in Xander's opinion.

Xander continued unabated, "Jades are made up of the unconscious understanding of their original owner. So then, what happens when a Jade breaks in the first place? Understanding does not disappear. It is ingrained in a person's brain, and neither does it break into fragments. Rather, the shattering of a Jade symbolizes the introduction of new knowledge into a Jade."

River listened intently as she nodded her head while Xander talked about Jades. It seemed like she was transformed from the bratty sister into the model student that she claims she was.

It's always amazing whenever I see her transform like this. It's honestly kind of reassuring as an older brother to see River like this. At least she's capable of being a functional member of society.

"Wait, so how did the Jade break in the first place then if we toppled it over. If understanding can't be lost or broken, then how is it possible that a drop to the floor would break it," River inquired.

What a good student! A plus. 100 percent. Five! I knew she was a genius!

Xander cleared his throat with a blank expression on his face. Tilting his glasses, he explained, "That's the good part sis. We didn't do anything."

"It was just you", River interjected, "Sorry, continue."

"It was just bad timing that's all. The owner of the Jade just had a revelation of some kind just as it hit the floor. It'll fix itself in the next hour or so" Xander shrugged his shoulders as he chuckled lightly.

"Wait, if that's the case, then why didn't you say anything? Why'd you make me worry like that?" River questioned incredulously.

"It's fun seeing you flustered", Xander admitted as he smirked at his sister.

"I hate you."

"I hate you too!" Xander beamed happily.

River frowned at her brother and turned away pouting. She fixed herself some of the leftover bread and water as she mumbled under her breath various profanities that would make someone as virtuous as Xander faint.

Still though. If the owner recently had a revelation, that means he must be part of a noble family then. He's probably looking seriously for his Jade frantically to use his newfound power. The illusion will wear off as soon as an outsider were to look at the coins still in Wolf's pocket. I need to get rid of the Jade as soon as possible.