Chapter 5 - The Four Points

Air mage Lasaiu a Djinn who’s utmost essence was made of light blue wind with streaks of silver floated in front of the Lecture hall/Demonstration room slowly filling up with the humans from earth. It seemed a transformation was wrought on humanity, still there were hesitant steps, and cautious glances at their fellows, especially the unearthly Djinn, whose vaguely human features did not hide sharp cheekbones, or pointed ears atop the muscular build that simply ended in thick swirls of wind. Fitted with all types of armor, mail being predominant, the armor seemed more patched than anything as earthlings trickled in slowly, with robe-wearers being dotted across the lecture hall. Everyone subconsciously sat far from others, and this was highlighted when 15 minutes passed after I arrived and the doors shut with a quiet thud. Looking around I saw not even a quarter was filled.

Lasaiu’s voice filled the hall, neither loud nor quiet but coming from all directions. “Waiting any longer would only do more harm, you are the first forty, and as so we will begin. Worry not for your kin, for there are other, lesser teachers. We shall begin post-haste, settle yourselves for the next hour and a half as it is ours while others still scramble for their guides.” With that we were motioned to sit down, and while the guy was certainly cocky, something about him struck a familiar chord within me. “Now that the troublemaker Offipy has perhaps made my job more demanding, he has without a doubt granted your very lives a boon within this tutorial. I already see some have achieved a small amount of proficiency in their elemental concepts. Be present and close your eyes as I guide you through your inner selves. Breathe as the gnome showed you, in, out into a state of meditation.” Incense wafted into our lungs as we were guided through meditation, calming us and stilling our troubled thoughts until there was only blankness.

A whisper from the wind carried his words to us, directly into our minds. *Within yourself is a light in your center this is how you find it…* Following the instructive voice, I did not find it intrusive. The calming atmosphere made my process feel steady as my mind's eye dropped into my body. A sensation I never felt before presented itself as I could feel the new energies within my body coursing through in a gentle circulation that touched upon every facet of my inner workings. Almost as if I was looking at a color coded X-ray of myself in real time, but instead of bones, which were present of course, the main focus was swirling around and through everything. Currents of a river came to my mind as I scrutinized the white light, flashes of lighter shades of blue with glints of deep red appeared seemingly at random, their colors bobbing in and out of the eddies of what I realized was my mana. Upon closer inspection I started to notice a pattern, an underlying shape to the whirls that beckoned me closer. *Stop, do not gaze closely this time, examine the river of mana at a later time, follow the stream towards its end, for it is also the beginning.*

Pulling back slightly I took heed and continued my journey, it felt like miles of circuitry were inscribed into me, as if I contained more than I was, which coming upon the center, I realized was not that far off. Within the convoluted currents I saw they did indeed all part from this spot and ended as well. Some thicker than others, but what grabbed my attention the most was the globule of pulsating power in front of my eye. Clearly the origin of everything, it didn't so much as rotate as change into slightly different ever-changing dimensions within and around itself. *This is your source, the core of your power. For now it is a simple droplet with no structure but in time and with effort, you will deepen and broaden the foundations. Dip into the lake of energy and pull out the thinnest of light blue strands possible, choose the meridian leading to your left hand. There is no rush, find the correct way and guide it out, these are the pathways, and at natural junctures elemental essence can be expelled.*

Assuming meridians where these channels of power throughout my body, I felt a flare of confidence in myself I rarely had before. Determined to be able to use this knowledge I went a step further. There was no awareness of time as I methodically went through the meridian connections at my core and followed their currents to where they swirled against my skin. Forward and backward they took me, always beginning and ending at my center. Quickly my left hand connection was discovered, a small area in my palm where the revolving energy almost seemed to poke through, the thinnest of ephemeral barriers there. Similar scenes started playing out within as I started to grasp the lesson in full. My right hand quickly followed by the inside arches of both feet. I could tell more was possible but unavailable to me in this short time.

Gathering the thinnest of light blue essence I felt a breeze across my soul, soothing and effervescent, playful even. As I guided the animated essence down the meridian to my left hand I felt a strange tingling, almost as if the power I was guiding was holding its breath in anticipation. It calm to my palm with ease, and I opened my eyes. Willing the power forward I came to a block. Frowning and doubled down and pushed with both will and power until there was a pop. A sharp pain erupted from my palm as a gust blew forward tinged slightly blue to my eyes. Ruffling the student rows before me and throwing the gentle current around us in a slight disarray for only less then a second before it was guided into passivity again. I felt a momentary weakness as if I had just put down a large load which was quickly dispersed. My hand throbbed by I grinned triumphantly.

I looked towards the instructor and he waved me down *join the others here and meditate, repeat this feat as many times as you can, consolidate your gains and advance further down the road of cultivation. Congratulations.* With that I proceeded to where two others were already in a lotus position, eyes closed, both in robes. Lasaui handed me a vial that pulsed in the color of a vital rainbow. *Consume this once done, you only have about twenty minutes.* Assuming the same position I felt a current of air envelop me, cutting off outside sounds. Closing my eyes I ran through my pathways and almost immediately found my center once again. Having already mapped out the other natural points of egress I began with my right hand.

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Again I willed and pushed, right hand throbbing as air funneled into the dome before me. The pain built again as weakness washed over me, compounding. Undeterred I traveled down my leg into the next, and found more resistance. Pulling more power to fuzz across my meridians I built it around this point on the archway of my left foot until the pressure grew. Harder I willed it forward to no avail, until with a grunt it burst forth in a small storm of wind, shaking the dome before me. Blood started trickling into my boots as I flexed my foot. It was as if some stuck a shard of glass into it, the feeling approaching what I dared to handle. My palms throbbing increased and the shooting pain in my foot steadily chipped away at my concentration. *Continue young spellblade, finish the four points!* The instructor pressed me and I forged through. Gathering my will I hastily grabbed a larger than recommended amount of the energetic energy and shot forward with it, holding it together as best I could. The pain built to a crescendo as the guiding turned into a struggle, my mind starting to haze over. Reaching the weak point I shoved all hesitation to the back of my mind and bullied through, a seam in the side of my shoe splitting as the chaotic energy cut outwards and nicked it. Condensed air plowed outward and slammed into the dome, my eyes opened wide as Lasaui raised his hand to strengthen the barrier. Weakness stole my limbs, while agony overtook my mind, I screamed and the last thing I saw was the instructor leaning over me and tilting a vial down my throat.

*Idiotic of you to have opened the third point. Rest, you will be just fine, though I suppose you couldn’t be blamed.*

~You have unlocked the four main points of the human meridian system~

~For doing so all at once, and being the first of your world to achieve this, the reward is now personalized - Calculating~

~Congratulations, you have been awarded the passive ability Manipulative Assistance, this reward is based upon your burgeoning bloodline and proficiency potential~

As the information went past I felt myself being mended as I came to consciousness once again. My extremities were warm now, the elixir I was fed continuing to nourish and congeal the points into proper outflows. As the process came to a close I noticed the barriers suppressing my power from the outside world were noticeably thinner and more malleable. Shaking my head and opening my eyes, I sat up, the elixir doing nothing more for the weakness I felt still leaching my strength, though it was tapering off, albeit slowly. Looking upon the hall I saw that nothing had changed other than a few more people joined those in lotus positions. Chainmail wearers and even a man in full plate in intense meditation within their domes.

Lasaui Looked down upon me with an unreadable expression then gently placed his hand upon my center. A rush entered me as most of the exhaustion was dispelled. Voice ominous, “this is not something you should expect regularly, young human, but your ordeal was as much my fault as it was your ambitious nature. If you did not open the fourth point, you would have been imbalanced in a way that would be crippling, which in these circumstances is a death sentence.” Looking down his face softened into something distantly related to friendly, “I look forward to your future instruction. Temper your thirst for power and take heed not to overestimate yourself, or you will find your path cut short, ending before it truly begins. Experiment with caution, I expect progress when I see you tomorrow. Go.” He waved me off as I stood and walked towards the doors.

Looking back I saw the others coming out of meditation many with smiles. I took note of these, as those who had succeeded with opening two points were no doubt of the rarer variety. I thought about the warning and decided I would consider it, with a grain. If we survive by becoming powerful, risks must be taken, after all.

Treading the old cobblestone streets I noticed most people were now kitted out, looking like a packed renaissance fair. However instead of plastic and rubber, it was a jingle of weaponry and sharp edges. The faces that passed me were more afraid than determined, more cautious than excited, but they would fight, and we would do our best to survive.

My path led me back towards the armory into the coliseum, and as I entered the huge structure sporting large pillars slowly descending into the center, dark hallways appeared as I followed the route before me. Past doors and rooms to either side of the cobblestone walkway it turned to dirt and sand, small puffs billowing from my footsteps. Light shining ahead brought relief from the dim lighting lining the tunnel, opening into an expansive pit larger than a football field. Dotting the sands were others in small groups gathering, and mine went to an even smaller group then most. All sporting weaponry with leather or mail armor, I approached the group of seemingly 70 or so and stood off to the side. Looking up and around I saw a short wall separating us from the tiers of seating stretching up, capable of seating tens of thousands, clearly more than their own tutorial numbers could fill.

As we all waited more people came in, steadily increasing the number of other groups while ours stayed few, with people arriving sparingly. Feeling refreshed and full of energy, I sat down and began meditating. Into my inner world I dove and was surprised at the ease it came to me, where before it was becoming easier but still took a modicum of concentration, this was effortless like second nature. Remembering my reward I had a thought and the prompt appeared.

Manipulative Assistance - Passive ability: Tailored to you, this version brings your mind and energy into a closer state of co-existence, increasing innate familiarity with the needs and wants of each.

Interestingly enough, that explained much of what was happening. Reaching into my core was instantaneous, a smaller trickle then even earlier able to be manipulated. As I did so I ran it through my four points meridians, exultant with the ease of it. I opened my eyes and found it more difficult but I could keep it going, coming to my feet I lurched, my momentum a bit faster than expected and almost lost the cycling, as a paltry amount even of what I was cycling was dispersed through my legs. I smiled as what I assumed was our instructor strode toward us with confidence, for every step he took he covered yards despite his small stature. I saw the correlation and my smile turned into a shit-eating grin. Guide wasn’t joking about the extra class. It was a sign from somewhere.