Vir gave the idea some thought. It was certainly possible, if unlikely. All one really had to do to control their prana was to will themselves to take hold of it. Just that most people started with such abysmal prana control, it wouldn’t even be noticeable until they honed it to a certain point. It was likely many humans actually succeeded at manipulating it and simply mistook it for failure.
“The question is—are the humans aware?” Cirayus asked, stroking his beard. “Are their teachings vague by design? Or did they simply pass down any process that had a chance of working?”
“I’d bet seric on the latter,” Vir said. “They aren’t even aware of two affinities. Three, if you include Ash. They think Talents don’t even use magic because you can use them in places where airborne prana density is low. I wouldn’t give them too much credit.”
“That sounds quite absurd, I must admit. Though, without the Iksana and their ability to see prana, who could say where we demons would be today?”
True, Prana Vision is what laid the foundation for all my later progress. Without it, he’d still think he was prana scorned. He’d be Talentless, and he’d never have made the insights into Prana Channeling that he had.
“Whatever it may be, having such a standardized system of magic has its own benefits,” Cirayus commented. “Limitations, yes. But benefits as well.”
“Hard to see how it could be any better than that Aspect of Midwinter’s Embrace you mentioned. Having multiple spells at your disposal without carrying around a bunch of orbs sounds pretty good to me.”
“Aye, the Aspect spells have great potential. Unlocking them, however, is another matter entirely. It’s a rare demon who can get Midwinter to do much more than cool an area on a hot day, or sprinkle light snow upon their foes. Demonic tattoos are fueled by imagination and willpower. There are no manuals. No documented process to teach our young. The path differs for each and every demon, and is one that must be walked alone, with precious little to guide them.”
“I mean, mejai are rare among humans, too,” Vir replied. “I don’t think you could say they’re at an advantage there.”
“Perhaps, but standardization comes with several benefits. When fighting as part of an army, it is far easier to command and coordinate troops with the same abilities. Can you tell me why?”
Vir thought it over. “You can have all your mejai perform the same attack with a single order?”
“Aye, but that’s not all. If one mejai falls, another may take their place. Not so with demons. We have issues banding together in armies as it is, but our unique powers turn battlefield logistics into a nightmare fraught with complexity. This orb pre-charging trick is quite valuable as well. I only wish demons had something like it.”
“Honestly surprised they don’t. Thanks to that, anyone can use C Grade combat magic, even if they aren’t mejai.”
“Incredible. It means humans are limited only by how many orbs they can produce, not how many mejai they have. Quite the overwhelming advantage. ’Tis the reason demons tend to focus on their chakra instead. For while a few of us wield strong offensive magics, nearly all have opened two or three chakras.”
“That takes time and meditation, right? No way to hurry the process along?”
Cirayus nodded. “The lower chakras can all be opened with effort. There are no shortcuts, but the path is well understood.”
“That’s not useful to me right now. I need a way to defeat these beasts. And I need it fast.”
“Patience, lad. All will come in time.”
“If only we had that,” Vir replied, frustrated.
While they’d ventured deeper into the Ash, it hadn’t been deep enough to offset the time flow. Not nearly. According to Cirayus, the world still flowed more slowly here than it did in the Human Realm. Which meant weeks had gone by already. Not to mention the Mahakurma was still on the move, traveling to who-knew-where. If it delved too far into the ash before Vir was ready, he’d have to bail.
The best way to avoid that unfortunate scenario was by training. And by defeating the Domain Lords—the fell beasts who claimed the land as their own.
“Where are you going?” Cirayus asked.
“To get stronger.”
“Lad, didn’t your fight teach you anything? You need rest. You’re not even fully recovered.”
Vir shook his head. “Not gonna fight it. Not until I’m stronger. But meditating won’t hurt me, will it?”
Cirayus sighed. “If you must. But you’ve had a long day, and your body and mind need rest. Trust me, recovery is as essential as stress to a warrior’s growth.”
“One hour. I’ll be back by then. Promise.”
“Be aware there’s an Ash Tear nearby. Do not venture close to it. I doubt any beasts will venture out of it, but do not take any chances.”
“Another one? There was one in the sky when we first arrived. It is unusual, but not unheard of.”
“I’ll be careful.”
Vir walked back through the forest and down the hill, lost in thought. Haste truly was the Talent he needed most right now. There ought to be no reason he couldn’t learn it, except that it was considered a Rare Tier Talent. Its workings would no doubt be more complex than Leap and High Jump.
Vir stopped in his tracks when he noticed his legs were taking him close to the edge of the Shredder’s territory. The beast currently slumbered, but Vir had learned firsthand that a surprise attack would fail; the beast was simply too responsive, and he doubted striking while it was asleep would succeed.
There’s that Ash Tear, Vir thought. It was now only a few paces off the ground, at the other end of the Shredder’s territory. The beast had given the Tear a wide berth.
Retreating from the sleeping Shredder, Vir soon found the pond Cirayus mentioned, surrounded by tall reeds that he recognized as the same kind he’d eaten earlier in the Ash.
At least food won’t be an immediate issue. It wasn’t tasty at all, and there wasn’t nearly enough to sustain him for months on end, but he figured there’d be other, better options by that time.
Covered in ash, Vir didn’t dare consume. Rudvik had trained Vir at an early age to boil water whenever he could, and he intended to do just that.
Sounds like the Mahakurma’s stopped for the day, Vir thought, noting the distinct absence of the beast’s thuds. While distracting, its movement did have the benefit of ridding its shell of Ash buildup.
With a deep breath, Vir sat down to meditate.
He had one hour to make some progress toward new powers, and just maybe, find a way to fix Prana Vision while he was at it.
18HASTY PROGRESS
Vir ruminated about Haste, his mind soon wandering. Several paths were open to him now, which was a luxury he’d never had before. He could, of course, choose to pursue new Talents. Or he could learn how to fix Prana Vision. If that didn’t fancy him, he could always work on expanding his prana capacity. Or…
Vir thought of the Chakra System. It was powerful, mysterious, and spoke to something deep within him. He wanted it. The thought of opening his first chakra made his heart pump, but there was next to no chance of that happening soon.
Maybe his prior incarnations had opened their chakras, but he lacked their memories. Without Parai, Narak, Shardul, and Ekanai to help him, he was no different from any other demon. This meant it might even be years before he opened his Foundation Chakra without Cirayus to accelerate the process. For now, he forced his excitement down and deferred his pursuit of chakras. They would have to come later.