Chapter 19

Ritual of Awakening

The Plains of the Undying Lands. One of the Four Great Plains. A vast land of withered trees, yellow grass, and rocks. An unchanging landscape as far as the eye could see. The wind bellowed and dust rattled. The wagon reached the end of the road and began to hover, carried up by the wind. Over the rocks and plateaus. The roof the wagon acting as one large kite, pushed up by powerful gusts of wind that rolled up from the ground. Iris took out large capes and draped them over the horses. Their hooves dangling in the air. The horses nervously whinnied as they were lifted up by the air current.  

"Oh!" exclaimed many of the children excitedly. In a world where no one could fly, the plains were the closest normal people could get to flight. To drift aimlessly along the land. Such a feeling. Many people would travel their entire lifetimes. Grey could feel his body lift up in the air. The world as light as a feather. The motions of the wagon had changed from a bumpy feeling to a gently swaying. Grey could hear the children gathering near the back of the wagon looking outside.

Grey sits quietly and decides to move up towards the front, next to Iris.

"Iris?"

"Grey? Ah, you can't see so this place must seem really boring to you."

"No, its okay."

Even though Grey could not see. He could smell. The air had a freshness to it. The subtle aroma of a several flowers. He could almost taste the sweetness in the air. Tangy and sticky.

"I can imagine what it would look like."

"Haha," laughed Iris. Her hair moving. She helped him the front of the wagon. She pulled a lever and steered the wagon using flaps at the side of the wagon. The fans making loud swoosh as they turned next to him.

"Iris," spoke Grey. His hair swaying in the wind. "Was I wrong to think of becoming a hero? I have often thought that the way to go was to be as kind and gentle. A good child. Am I wrong to think so?"

Iris smiled. The horizon opening before her eyes. A large forest coming into view. The tangled vines. Trees over a hundred feet tall. They dwarf the surroundings in such grandeur and girth to cause pause. As tall as mountains, they cast such long shadows.

"You aren't wrong, but you are too set in a way that is only a part of what the world is. You have to accept everything. The bad and the good. You should see them as the same. Everything has a reason, a purpose. Come when we arrive at the location let me show you something."

Grey nodded his head. The wagon drifted into the forest. The birds sang in the tree tops. The vines large as houses, coiling around the trees like velvet. The wagon landed in a clearing. The children jumped off the wagon one by one and ran around the grass. Their feet kicking up mud, leaving footprints on the dark brown soil.

Grey shakily jumped down from the ground. The jump though only a few feet felt as if he and leaped into a bottomless chasm. He shook for a bit, but Iris held his hand to keep his steady. He landed and smiled feeling the wetness between the soles of his shoes. He was on his adventure. The one he had spoken about so long ago back in his village. For the first time in years, he felt as if he was where he was suppose to belong.

~~~

Iris gathered the children together in a circle. Grey stood next  to Ciara and Oswin.

"I'll the Ritual of Awakening and how to go about it. We will start it in a few hours so please prepare yourself."

"Yes, Iris." replied all the children.

"The Ritual of Awakening was discovered by studying nature. After all, the first creatures to use magic were not men, but monsters. Giants, Elementals, Spirits, Beasts. The four types of creatures in the world. All of them use magic in different ways. To awaken is to find your own path by living in nature. To see how it moves and to imitate with your body. Here where magic is the strongest will you find your own path."

Iris moved her hand. A bright ray of light bathed the children in a warm glow. The light vibrated with a strange energy. Resonating it created music. Light music that filled touched each of their hearts.

"Normally, in a fight with a magical creature. You will hear music emanating from their body. This is what we call battle music. It tells you that the creature sees you as a threat and has activated its aura. It is up to you whether or not to fight. In a dungeon the beasts don't resonate this music but the dungeon instead does."

The children gasped in excitement. Grey was baffled. He had never heard of a person creating battle music. It was a phenomenon reserved for beasts and monsters. In his heart he could only feel awe and wonder.

"Normally, in a Ritual of Awakening is done in a large group of initiates and guardians who protect them, but for most this has one significant drawback. It keeps the candidates too safe. The magic they form is one under a shelter. Like a sapling covered by a towering tree. The true potential of the magic they form is far lower than those that are able to complete this ritual alone where the dangers of the forest are real. This is the meaning of battle music. To harmonize with the world. To take in the good and the bad."

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She shook her head.

"So, I'll ask this of you. The chances of succeeding by yourself is very low. Will you still try it?"

The children looked each other. Their eyes full of excitement and joy.

"I will try it," said Max. His eyes gleaming.

"Me too!"

"Yeah!"

Grey nodded his head. To be a mage was his fondest dream. To hear that you could do some spectacular thing that only few else could do! Battle Music! Why would he pass up this chance? Not even those hundreds of adventurers he had met years ago could do such an amazing thing.

Iris raised her hand to calm down the children. Many of them were bouncing up and down and running around in circles.

"I will leave by night fall. The secret to completing the ritual is to find a secluded place in this forest where you can meditate on a particular element of the world. If you want to be skilled in water. Find a waterfall. Wind find a high place where the wind blows. Earth dig yourself a hole. Meditate there. The magic will resonate giving you added insights every day. You will feel yourself changing, but pay no attention to it. Accept it as a part of you. Learn to control it. Avoid the beasts in the area and survive, learning to live off nature itself. I will come back in a week. If you are still here I will take you back."

All the children bowed their heads.

"Thank you, Iris."

"No need to thank me. Just come back safely."

The rest of the children began to unpack their things and set up a tent and campfire for the night. Grey stood there reflecting on what Iris had said. Meditate. The place he chose to stay for a week would determine his growth for the rest of his life. He had to choose carefully.

"Grey what are you thinking about?" asked Ciara. Her sweet voice close to his ear. He turned slightly. "Ah, Ciara. I was thinking where I should meditate."

"Ah? Why think about that now? Shouldn't you worry more about how you are going to survive?"

He tilted his head a little confused.

"Grey," she said concerned, "You don't tell me you forgot you are blind! You will have a harder time then all of us. Is it not better to pick the first safe place you can find and stay there? The rest of us can't help you as it might mess up your awakening"

Grey shook his head and smiled. "A lot of bad things have happened to me. I think I can handle the wilderness. Even if I may not know a lot of things about people. I should live without regrets."

His mind thinks back a starry night. That time he had spoke these words to a girl. Sho.

"That's why I have to change. To learn right from wrong. To go through the world fearlessly so that sad things won't happen again."

He turned his head down on towards the floor. His stick poking the grass beneath his feet.

"If I am to chose a spot it must be a spot that represents me as person."

"Grey," giggled Ciara, "You have a cute face when you are serious."

Grey blushed. He covered his face with his hand to stop her from looking at him. To Ciara it was even more funny as he covered the wrong side of his face. She gave him a light kiss on his exposed cheek. His face turned shades like a butterfly wing.

"A good luck charm. From where I come we do this to people who we want to come back. Come back Grey," smiled Ciara.

"Okay," replied Grey, wiping his face. The sounds of children laughing as they played around in the camp. The freshness of the air, tingling into his nose.

Grey spoke to himself.

"Sho? Does an adventure really need to have an ending? "

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Author Note:

So people concerned about the tragedy. Well...I tell you it was not meant to be a tragedy....like I have said before. Which is why I was very reluctant to put that tag and the mature tag, even if it has elements of both. Because people have a tendency to...judge a story too soon. *sigh*.

This story is meant to be one of triumphant of human will. It should empower the reader by the time they finish to do whatever they want to do and be happy by themselves. At least, something so grandiose, I hope to at least touch upon a lot of things. And my inability as an author I might not write them as great as I could and might not get the meanings down right, but of course I will try my best.

I also wanted to drop a note and let people know I may take a break tomorrow. Maybe. Negative comments have also given me some things to think about. And while I like to think I'm as resilient as a rock. It takes me a moment to recover from them. Sometimes, I think I should have made a simpler story, haha. I need some ice cream and pudding...probably lots of pudding.

Edit: Moved rest of the comment to different thread.