Focusing on a single idea was much harder. Vir’s mind would drift, often to Maiya and Neel. Errant thoughts of unlocking Talents turned the ocean of his mind choppy, and before he knew it, he’d had a half dozen random other thoughts.
“Your mind will wander,” Cirayus said soothingly, perhaps sensing Vir’s mental state with his Life Chakra. “This is normal. Do not dismiss the errant thought. Recognize it. Accept it for the distraction it is. Then whisk it away.”
Vir tried Cirayus’ strategy. It did work, initially. But soon, Vir’s mind became so preoccupied with shuttling thoughts away, he had no time to actually meditate.
“This isn’t working,” he grumbled.
“Your mind is agitated. Allow me to help.”
“How, exactly?” Vir asked, thinking back to their prior experience.
“You will feel a presence in your mind, like last time. It will feel strange to you, but do not resist it. It won’t feel nearly as invasive. Understand?”
Vir nodded, unsure of what to expect. He found out soon enough. An alien sensation touched him. Not his body, but something deeper. It felt a little like standing under Riyan’s shower, except one that had two spigots—with one burning hot, and the other chillingly cold.
Though his body jolted at the sensation, Vir did his best to allow it to wash over him. Soon, the hot and the cold melded with each other, enveloping his mind in a warm, comfortable blanket.
Vir’s pent-up frustration dissipated. So what if he took an extra week or two to cross the Ash? Maiya wasn’t going anywhere. She knew Cirayus was with him. She knew he’d be out of touch for a while. Maiya was a big girl who could take care of herself.
“Good. Now focus.”
The thoughts were fewer this time, and Vir felt his mind guided toward the concept of sturdiness. It wasn’t anything as strong as mind control—Vir retained his thoughts, and he didn’t sense that Cirayus was reading his mind—but it helped. It soothed him, and he sunk into the feeling.
Soon Vir felt a heaviness settle upon him. Light as a feather at first, then progressively weightier until it became uncomfortable.
There was something there, though. Past the discomfort, like a mountain seen through a veil, far away. A sense of power—of presence—that Vir had never experienced before. This was strength on a dimension Vir hadn’t even conceived of before.
“Well done.” Cirayus’ voice radiated sincerity, and Vir wondered if he’d imbued it with the Life Chakra. The giant retracted his influence from Vir’s mind, and the weight lifted. “You have taken your first step to opening the Foundation Chakra. How did it feel?”
“Heavy. Like you’d activated Balancer of Scales on me. But it was different from what you did the other day when you showed me all the different chakras.”
“Aye, it would be. There, I used my chakras to suppress and attack. Here, I wished to aid you. Chakras are not inherently destructive in nature. They are colorless; it is the wielder that dyes them with their intent. The heaviness you speak of is the sensation of the Foundation Chakra. Sometimes also called the Root Chakra, both for its location at the base of your spine, and—like the roots of a great tree—immovable.
“Well? Do you wish to go again?” Cirayus asked, regarding Vir intently.
“Is that even a question?” Vir smirked. “We train until the storm passes. And then I’m fighting that Ash Beast.”
Cirayus smiled, but there was a sadness to his expression. A sense of foreboding that Vir couldn’t place. “As you wish, my liege.”
20AGENT OF CHANGE (MAIYA)
“Your Highness,” the Head Handmaiden said, bowing her head as she poured Princess Ira a cup of tea. The princess wore an elegant gown in the crimson-and-black colors of Kin’jal, which contrasted beautifully with her platinum blonde hair that sat proudly behind her head, raised into a bun.
“Excellent as always, Nee,” the princess said, sipping her tea. “Your preparation brings out the woody undertones while maintaining the smooth profile of this tea. Well done.”
The Head Handmaiden nodded demurely.
It was another beautiful, temperate day in Sonam. The sun peeked out from the clouds, birds chirped, and a gentle breeze tickled the Royal Gardens. Maiya sat with the princess under a white trellis that looked as though a Kin’jal warrior had attempted to copy the flowing style of Altani architecture—and only partially succeeded.
Nee? That’s the Head Handmaiden’s name? Maiya thought. To this day, she’d never learned the witch’s name. Nor had she ever had the guts to ask.
Then, to Maiya’s horror, the teapot neared her own cup.
No way. No badrakking way! She’s not about to… No! She is!
The teapot tilted, the Head Handmaiden glared, and Maiya’s eyes went wide. Hot, perfectly prepared Kin’jali green tea poured out, landing perfectly in her cup. Maiya knew then that she was going to die.
The mere thought of the Head Handmaiden pouring her tea made her squirm in her skin. It was all so wrong, like the sun failing to rise in the morning or the stars refusing to fall at the end of the night.
She’s gonna kill me for this.
“That’s just her nickname, by the way,” Ira said, casting a cheeky gaze at the stoic Head Handmaiden.
“Her real name’s—”
“Princess Ira! I’ve suddenly recalled a fond memory from a time when you were just a little girl. You’d hidden yourself out of embarrassment for a whole week after you’d wet—”
“Ahhh, it’s quite a hot day, isn’t it?” Ira said in a shrill voice, the back of her palm against her forehead. “I fear I may have succumbed to heat stroke, for I’ve suddenly lost my train of thought! Pardon me!”
Sweat broke out on Maiya’s brow. Such was the tension in their words.
“Of course, princess. Please mind your weak constitution. You’ve pushed yourself too hard again.”
Ira nodded solemnly. “Thank you for your concern, Head Handmaiden. I’ll be more mindful of my poor health.”
Did she seriously just fight a princess? And she won!
The Head Handmaiden bowed and left with her bar cart with absolutely perfect etiquette.
“Her name’s Neeti, by the way,” Princess Ira said the moment the Head Handmaiden was out of earshot. At least, Maiya thought she was out of earshot, but when the woman turned and leveled a death glare at the princess, Maiya reaffirmed her opinion that she wasn’t human; she was an Ash Beast wearing human skin.
Maiya froze, feeling the Head Handmaiden’s gaze shift to her, like an all-seeing eye.
She can’t read your thoughts. She can’t read your thoughts. She can’t read your thoughts… Can she?
The mantra carried her through the ordeal, and the witch’s pressure dissipated.
Ira deflated. “Alas, it seems I’ve been vanquished.”
You brought that on yourself. Maiya sipped her tea. Wow, this is good.
“Princess Ira, I’m honored to have been invited by one as esteemed as yourself, though—”
“Maiya, please,” the princess scolded. “No formalities. Must I repeat myself so? Or are you only allowed to oblige if I chide you twice? Wait. Don’t answer that. The look on your face tells all.”
“Sorry,” Maiya muttered. “But Neeti, huh?”
“I know, right? ’Tis far too cute a name for a straight-laced stickler like her. Though I suppose it is somewhat fitting. It means Justice in the old tongue.”