Chapter 26: Cards of Fate

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"My advice is, never do tomorrow what you can do today. Procrastination is the thief of time."

— Charles Dickens, (David Copperfield)

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"Today I am going to teach you both a special technique that only a very few martial artists in the entire world are privy to. It was a technique that my own master taught me when I was young. At first, I wasn't sure if you three were worthy of learning it but seeing as how you have mastered everything I had taught you till now, I am positive that I am making the right decision to teach this to you." Richard said with a nostalgic expression on his face.

Richard had truly been confused for the last few months if he should teach them the most powerful martial technique in his arsenal, the use of chi or not. But after seeing their 'legendary genius' level talent, he had accepted that not teaching them just because of a few worries in his mind about their future would be the biggest mistake in his life.

"He is probably just talking about those flying kicks he showed earlier. I still think he was using hidden springs under his feet for that trick." Vicki whispered to Bruce and Selina.

"Shh." Selina shushed her.

Helena had already left for her uncle's house in Italy about two days ago after Bruce's birthday celebration. But even though they missed their friend, Helena, they still didn't halt their training for even a single day. They were determined to learn everything they could within the limited timeframe they had.

"I didn't use springs in my shoes Vicki. What you saw that day during training was also a small function of chi. Chi is the very life force flowing within us just like it flows through every living organism on the planet. It is the spiritual energy that connects our souls to our bodies. It has been called a lot of names in different civilizations. Chi, Qi, Ki, Chakra. They are all the same." Richard began teaching.

"So, it's magic?" Selina asked disbelief written on her face.

"No, it isn't exactly magic. It's a mystique art but not proper magic. Instead, it is the flow of one's life force. We don't learn how to control it but simply how to direct it. As long as we can control its flow, we can do a lot of impossible things with it." Richard explained as suddenly a calm slightly golden aura began to flow around him.

"The fundamental process of using chi is not to implement force but to simply remain calm and meditate to combine yourself with nature to augment your chi." He said as he raised his arm while breathing slowly, approaching the dojo wall with his raised arm and lightly punched it.

The moment his arm touched the wall, the flawless wall caved in, and huge spider web-shaped cracks developed on it looking like it was punched by a monster.

"That's amazing. How is that even possible? Did your chi increase your strength?" Vicki asked not believing what she was currently seeing.

"Not really, Chi doesn't magically increase your strength per se. Instead, it influences your muscles and forces them to act to their full extent and its energy might also affect the target and try to destroy it from within. That's why a person with chi is ten times more dangerous than another person with the same physical abilities but without chi." Richard said as he pointed at his handwork on the wall.

"So, does anyone can use chi?" Bruce asked the question which has been plaguing his mind for a while now.

"Yep, as long as the person is alive and has a soul, he or she will be able to learn to use chi," Richard answered. "Now let's see which one of you can learn chi the fastest. It's quite different than the other martial arts techniques I have taught you till now. While those mostly depended on your physical abilities, this one depends on your state of mind and tranquility of soul."

After that Richard showed them a set of meditation and specific breathing techniques for them to best harness the power of chi. They weren't quite hard for them to follow but performing them constantly as Richard demanded it was a sweat-inducing task.

Bruce was quite excited to learn chi because he had thought that chi would enable him to achieve the impossible. In his mind, he had even imagined himself as a Wuxia protagonist who could just by cultivating all day long increase his power but he soon understood the difference between chi in DC verse and chi in Wuxia or Xin Xia novels.

Chi here was only a temporary method of increasing one's physical abilities through contact with one's spiritual side. But there was no tempering your body or stuff. In a word, this chi was meant for combat, not cultivation.

Bruce had already successfully copied the breathing and meditation techniques of Richard a long time ago, the moment when he had first shown it to Bruce and the girls but copying and learning weren't the same thing.

Bruce had merely copied those techniques but to learn them he needed to find 'inner peace' according to Shifu..., uh, Richard Dragon. And that was where he was finding some difficulties. He didn't even understand what inner peace was because he was quite sure that he was already as fucking calm and peaceful as he could be.

So he wondered what he was truly missing in his quest for learning chi.

'Well, probably nothing a hundred hours of constant grind on my Nerve Gear won't solve.' He thought to himself as he smirked and looked at the two girls practicing the techniques and trying to copy them to the t.

They were really working hard, probably even more than him since they had to work harder to keep up with him despite him cheating his way through with his Photographic reflexes.

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<(Omniscient pov)>

"Ah, you are back. So, did you find anything about the... anomaly?" A humanoid figure with a deep voice asked without turning back.

"I did. I went to his house with my daughter. And don't call him an anomaly, that's not a respectable way to address anyone. He is not a thing but a living person and only a kid at that." Giovanni Zatara said with an annoyed expression on his face.

"Ah, humans and their petty manners. It's funny. You behave with the utmost respect for people yet still backstab them the first chance you people get." The person with the deep voice said after giving a small laugh.

"You are talking like you weren't a human yourself once. Don't forget that you were one of the very humans you are currently looking down upon." Giovanni sighed as he looked at the figure.

"I indeed was. But I ascended. I found my higher purpose and now I must guide humanity itself from the numerous threats it faces daily." The voice said with a little bit of arrogance mixed with it.

"Yeah, sure. And this arrogance right here like you are some sort of blueblood noble is the reason I don't like you. The only reason I am even working with you is because of Thomas. He was a good friend who had once helped me in my time of need, and I am just returning the favor by checking up on his son. So here, I did your stupid test." Giovanni snorted as he took out a set of tarot cards from his pocket.

"The Fool, the Lovers and Death. Interesting. And what about the possession test?" The figure asked as the three cards flew toward him from Zatara's hand.

"None. No demon or Ghost or otherworldly entity in his body. He was squeaky clean. Just regular old Bruce Wayne like the last time I saw him. Although, his soul did seem quite a bit stronger than kids of that age normally have." Giovanni said as he remembered what he had sensed when he had cast his spell on Bruce that day.

"Probably an effect of coming back from the dead. It's quite common. Happened with another kid I know who came back from hell recently.

"I see. So can I ask what those cards mean?" Zatara asked not able to hold back his curiosity.

"The Fool for him means that he is a nexus point of this particular world, representing the beginning, and end of this universe. He has unlimited and endless potential. The Lovers signify that he would have to face a lot of trials, experience lots of relationships, and would have to make choices that would determine not only his but the fate of the world itself. As for the third card, that's the tricky part." The figure said as he held the card of death in his hand while the other two cards continued to float in the air.

"Death or the Grim Reaper," Giovanni said with his brows furrowed.

"Yes. In this combination for the kid, it could mean either of two things. One, he is an avatar of death herself, spreading death to all those who deserve it, or two..., he is meant to be already dead." The person said as he turned around to face Zatara.

"But that's not possible. He is alive and quite well. I saw him myself. So it must be the other meaning." Giovanni said as he looked at the now floating death card.

"Yes, it seems so, doesn't it? Fate is a fickle thing after all. Sometimes it is written in stone and sometimes it can be changed as easily as a butterfly flapping its wings. I wonder what his fate will be, will he be a slave to his own fate or will he be able to break out of it?" The figure murmured.

Giovanni however didn't answer anything as he just continued to look thoughtfully at the golden helmet-wearing figure in front of him wondering why the mighty lord of Order was suddenly interested in the rich little orphan and how he mattered in the grand scheme of things that was the everchanging universe.

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