The color drained from Cirayus’ face. Things weren’t about to go wrong. They already had. Horribly so.
With closed eyes, Vir focused on the Life Chakra. Its feel—its meaning. Chakras, though metaphysical, seemed to occupy their own place within his body. For example, the Foundation Chakra sat at the very base of his spine, while the Life Chakra was just above it.
Concentrating on his memories of Shardul the Vicious, Vir cracked it open. Not fully—just as much as he could manage. Which was, admittedly, not very much at all.
The feeling reminded him of wading through water. When fully mastered, opening the Chakra offered no resistance at all. Right now, it was all he could do to nudge it even slightly.
It seemed to be enough. When Vir opened his eyes, he found a new presence. A gray demon stood before him. Clad in black steel plate and chainmail, with wavy black hair that fell to his shoulders, he cut an imposing figure. Shardul, of Garga. Shardul the Vicious.
Vir’s predecessor felt like an odd choice for mastering the Life Chakra—Parai the Ancient or Jalendra the Wise might’ve been a better fit, but try as Vir might, he’d been unable to. It seemed like he’d have to march back through time, predecessor by predecessor, regardless of whether they were the best option.
Vir rose, finding Shardul staring at his armored fist.
“So. I am dead, then. This is a memory conjured within your mindscape?”
“That’s… correct. You seem to be taking this rather well,” Vir commented. “Ekanai took a whole fight to convince.”
“Ekanai…” Shardul said, glancing at the Ghael who stood hunched over some paces away. “I take it you are a successor, then?”
“Shardul,” Ekanai said with a slight nod.
“Odd for an Iksana Ghael to be selected as Akh Nara. Then you must be the current incarnation,” Shardul said, turning toward Vir. “Exceedingly young, I must say.”
Vir’s face fell a bit. “You… don’t remember me. Do you?”
Shardul cocked his head slightly. “Would I have occasion to?”
“No. I suppose not,” Vir replied. “You saved my life, though. Taught me Dance of the Shadow Demon.”
“I did?” Shardul asked with a raised brow. “Surprising.”
“Well, maybe taught is an exaggeration. You took over my body and used it to get me out of danger. I… kinda took it apart and learned it on my own.”
This time, Shardul’s surprise was obvious. “Impressive. I’d not thought such a feat possible. Especially not without the bloodline tattoo. Odd that I have no recollection of this.”
Vir bit his lip, thinking of what happened at Mahādi. “Yeah, well. Things happened.”
“So? Why have you summoned me?”
“The boy struggles with the Life Chakra,” Ekanai rasped. “Despite endless duels, the Chakra eludes him.”
Shardul snorted. “Of course it would. What in the realms made you think you could open the Life Chakra by fighting?”
Vir and Ekanai could only respond in silence.
Now that I think about it… He’s right, Vir thought, scratching the back of his neck with embarrassment.
“This was your idea, wasn’t it?” Shardul asked Ekanai. “Let me guess. You single-mindedly focused on combat strength?”
“Strength is power,” Ekanai replied.
“And yet, the boy’s existence means you died. Didn’t you? I can only wonder why.”
Ekanai growled, and Vir wondered if he’d have to break up a fight. A fight! In the middle of his head, no less!
Maybe I really am going mad…
“Quite frankly, I am amazed you managed to get even this far with such a crude approach,” Shardul said, returning his gaze to Vir.
“Crude?” Ekanai said, clenching his fists.
Shardul ignored the demon, continuing to address Vir, “Come. Walk with me. And perhaps together, we can start you upon the path to opening your Life Chakra.”
64TEARS OF LIFE
“Ihave to say, for a manifestation of my memory, you’re quite detailed,” Vir said, observing the armored gray demon beside him. “I only ever saw you once, and that was when I was about to die.”
The scarred and pony-tailed gray demon in segmented plate armor walked with his hands clasped behind his back, metal boots crunching the dirt of Vir’s mindscape forest. Vir had dismissed Ekanai, finding it required most of his focus just to keep Shardul materialized, and so now they walked together through the forest.
Keeping the Reaper around would only have led to more fights between the two predecessors—something Vir was only too happy to avoid.
“The subconscious is powerful,” Shardul said. “I’ve no doubt you’ll recall more of your other predecessors when the time comes.”
“Still, you really are taking this awfully well. It’d be nice if the others do, too,” Vir said, avoiding a tree root. Given that this was his mindscape, he felt like he ought to have more control over it, but thus far, changing any facet of the meadow had proven difficult.
“I believe you’ll find the others quite amenable. I’m sure Jalendra the Wise would like nothing more than to chat philosophy for hours, while Narak the Destroyer would likely talk your ear off about battlefield tactics. Parai… Well, I’m afraid he may prove a poor conversation partner, but at least he will not attack you.”
Vir laughed. “Sounds like it’s all downhill from here, then. But enough about them. What of the Life Chakra? Can you help me?”
“Perhaps. You must already be aware that the Life Chakra’s domain is over all living beings, yes?”
“Right,” Vir said. “I’ve been trying to sense life, but it’s useless.” In fact, he was starting to relate to Maiya, and her inability to sense prana. Vir supposed this was the normal process for most people, however he wasn’t most people.
“I just don’t understand. You’ve all opened your Chakras. Why do I have to start from scratch every time?”
“Chakras—and their meaning—are unique to every demon. This is why, even after millennia, there is no formula or shortcut for success. The details always differ. So it is with you. Besides, you do have an advantage. You have me.”
“That’s fair, I suppose. Believe me, I’ve been trying.”
“I do not believe you have, Ekavir. You see Chakras as a means to power. As weapons to be used in combat.”
“Is that wrong?” Vir asked.
“Quite. Chakra’s powers are nothing but a side-effect. Take the Foundation Chakra, for example. It allows one to become attuned with the concept of solidity. Yes, this defends our minds against attacks of the Life Chakra, but we are fundamentally wiser for opening it.”
“A form of enlightenment,” Vir said, catching on. “Cirayus had said something like that at one point. So, what’s the meaning behind the Life Chakra?”
“That is for you to uncover. For me, it was the realization that slaughtering my enemies was not inherently evil. That the guilt I bore was ill-founded and misplaced.”
That was an interesting lesson, Vir felt, and not one he was sure he wished to learn. He wondered if this realization was what forged Shardul into Shardul the Vicious. Luckily, as he’d said, all demons were different. Vir’s path to enlightenment would not be the same.
“Tell me, Ekavir, what is prana?”
Vir frowned, wondering where the demon was going with this. “The Energy of Life,” he replied. “I can sense it just fine with Prana Vision. But prana and Chakra have nothing to do with each other.”
“And this is where you are wrong,” Shardul said, stopping to face Vir. He took in a deep breath and gazed up at the mighty Godhollows that ringed the meadow.
Shardul opened his left palm. “Prana,” he said, before opening his right. “Chakra.”
Bringing his hands together, he clasped his left in his right. “They are two sides of the same coin. Think of it. Without Chakra, the soul cannot exist. Without prana, life cannot exist. Yet, without life, there is no soul. And without soul, well… You have seen what Warrior Chakra attacks do to people.”