At the patrol camp in the forest.
In an early morning training session, Dartio addressed all the patrolmen who were receiving the lessons attentively. A very different Leiza was among them; serene, brave and competent in combat. Dartio commented to all:
-At some point, all of you are going to have to face Goan wielders, it is important to know how to attack them. Today's lesson has to do with that. Do you remember that silver device that Seip always carries on his back? That's an amplifier, an object that most Goan wielders use. When in combat you see the opponent carrying one of those, your priority should be to strike it until it becomes useless. And why is it so important to destroy that object? Because it was crucial to achieve the victory in The Great Revolution, an innovation that makes possible to amplify the power of the Goan with a lower consumption of the element. All it takes is a little Goan and the device will do the rest, causing an ignition and stopping the reaction obtained inside from dissipating. However, you should know that people with Goan will only use it when they consider it indispensable. They hate to unleash their power, because they are aware that by doing so they end up becoming less powerful. That is why it is uncommon to see two Goan wielders facing one another. Each one' s ability deters them from engaging in combat. They know that, even if they win, they would invest a lot of Goan to achieve it. They prefer to take advantage of their image with ordinary people, the mere threat of someone being a Goan wielder has become reason enough for him to impose his dominance without shedding a drop of sweat. However, they will not receive that courtesy from us, they will have to work hard and spend their most valuable resource if they want to defeat us. I guarantee you that, when you come face to face with them, you will always be looked down upon, seen as someone unworthy of spending Goan on. That will be your opportunity to make the rival realize too late that your strength should have been taken seriously. If you succeed in destroying that device they carry, you will have taken them out of their comfort zone. You will make them feel naked.
After receiving the information, the training consisted in tying a nut to each one of the participants. The nut would simulate being a Goan amplifier, which they had to protect at all costs; at the same time, they would try to crush their opponent's Goan amplifier. The nut was attached to different parts of the students' bodies, because in real life, Goan wielders used their amplifiers where they found it most convenient for the use of their abilities. Leiza's adversary had a nut strapped to his chest, while she got to carry one in the palm of her hand. She thought she had a great advantage, as her opponent had a rather exposed amplifier, while hers could be easily protected by simply closing her hand. What she did not take into account, was that she actually had to give up one of her arms to avoid putting her Goan amplifier within reach of the enemy. She could only fight with three of her limbs against an opponent who was fifty centimeters taller than her.
Trying to guard the nut with a clenched fist became a real feat when a burly, tall man tried to crush between his arms the small, delicate hand that represented Leiza's last wall of defense. The young woman's forearm became painted in an intense pink color after so many powerful swipes had crashed into it. Her former self would have given up in the face of that pain, but her new version could only think of ways to attack her adversary's chest. The man had had enough of playing with her and changed his strategy, attempting to immobilize her entire body and then strike at her hand. As he lunged forward trying to hug her, Leiza rushed under his arm and hit him with her elbow on the spine. The opponent turned to continue the attack, but could not see his aggressor, who had already rolled across the floor to the opposite flank. Then Leiza just had enough time to turn with a kick that accurately entered the tall man's chest. The nutshell exploded into countless pieces and the training duel came to an end. However, Leiza knew she couldn't go crazy and settle with that result, in a few hours, perhaps an even stricter practice session awaited her, held at night by Zaz.
She was becoming a tough fighter, but she didn't allow this to take away her tender and affectionate side. She continued to devote her few free hours playing with her giant pets, Luespo and Mity. Once the session was over, she returned to camp to be surrounded by both of them, getting covered by an extensive wall of soft fur ready to be petted. The huge gray cat allowed her to pass her hands over his body, something that was driving Mity the dog crazy, who desired those caresses exclusively for him. Leiza had to try to distribute her affections in equal proportions to maintain peace between the feline and the canine. After a while, Luespo lost his mood and retired to be alone, leaving Leiza's attention solely on Mity, who could never get tired of the cuddles he received. Both played for a while in the grass and enjoyed a nice time together, until suddenly the dog changed his plans and abruptly grabbed her with his snout, running at full speed to the outside of the camp with her trapped between his teeth. Leiza was alarmed, she was not injured by the action, but her dog had never behaved like that before.
Nothing she said could make him calm down. Mity didn't stop his run, continuing his trajectory as if he was on a steady course or escaping from someone. He ran for several minutes at top speed until a huge cliff behind the trees revealed itself, cutting off the path. The dog kept trotting, clenched his jaw to secure Leiza inside his mouth and jumped into the void. They fell through the air at great velocity, the distance of the impact was enough to destroy even a giant dog like him, Leiza knew it and watched in terror how both of them were about to end their existence as soon as gravity ended up pulling them to the ground. When their bodies approached the surface, a violet aura completely covered Mity, cushioning the impact of his paws touching the ground and making them both land safely. Leiza did not believe what she experienced, her heart rate was pounding and she did not understand the reason for her dog's suicidal behavior. But the adventure was just beginning with that abrupt descent from the heights, Mity started his march again and ran dodging the rocks that abounded everywhere. Leiza shouted to ask the dog to stop, but he ignored her and continued on his way. After a long stretch, Mity seemed blinded, as he ran full speed headlong into a huge boulder. The tiny woman clamped between the dog's teeth, closed her eyes before the impact, which prevented her from seeing that when they were about to collide with the obstacle, they passed through it as if it was just a bluish hologram. Once they crossed that strange intangible wall, both were inside a dark cave. Mity continued to walk, and it was only when he reached the bottom of the subway passage that he released the girl from his snout. As she got back on her feet, a strange female voice was heard in the cavern while the silhouette of a bluish woman was projected on one of the walls.
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-How good it is to finally see you, Coro! I see that you were able to accomplish your mission. You're still the best of all dogs. I guess she's the one you think is the right choice.
Mity barked excited to hear that voice, as if it was from someone he had known for a long time. The blue silhouette addressed Leiza, noticing the nervousness that dominated her.
-Don't be scared, woman. You can be calm, you are not in any danger. My name is Tebh, I am the original owner of the dog that accompanies you. Some years ago I had to give Coro a task and say goodbye to him. Today he comes back to me because he accomplished his mission. I know he must have come into your life unexpectedly, rest assured that this was no accident; he chose you.
Leiza remembered the way she met Mity for the first time. Just as that voice said, one day that old dog found her in the city and never stopped following her. She adopted and made him part of the family, never imagining that this little animal had something special.
-Coro must have been searching for the right person for a long time, perhaps even for years. After living with you, he came to the conclusion that you are the one we have been looking for.
Mity's violet aura flared up and caught Tebh's immediate attention.
-Violet? You must have gotten some red Goan, Coro. That would explain your new size.
Mity was twirling and wagging his tail in excitement at being surrounded by two women special to him.
-What's your name, my friend?
-I'm Leiza.
-All right, Leiza. We don't know each other very well, but I have a proposition for you. I trust completely in what Coro has decided. Pay attention, I will explain to you some things of utmost importance. I am Tebh Móruvel, a member of the second generation of the Adorisse descendants. Together, with my two brothers, I received from my grandmother the transference of blue Goan, a power with which the three of us became essential allies to protect the human species from its threats. In order to avoid internal conflicts, Adorisse, our grandmother, assigned a territory to each of us, where we could rule and create a kingdom. Soon we began to have our own children and wanted the best for them, so their great-grandmother inherited our family's distinctive skills to them. As the members of the Móruvel dynasty kept multiplying, trouble started; the cousins constantly argued with each other over who was more deserving of a new territory, causing someone to get badly hurt and their parents ending up standing for their son. Next thing I knew, everyone was attacking one another. My brothers unleashed a bloody fight between their families and both wanted to form an alliance with me in order to win the battle. I refused to participate and my kingdom was slaughtered because of it... my sons ended up murdered. Ravaged by my own blood, I witnessed how that blue power brought out the worst in human beings. It was a contradiction that something essential to save us from the enemy, ended up making us hostile and confrontational towards each other. The ambition reached its peak when my brother Buorpa wanted to guarantee his dominance, deciding to kill my grandmother to never again have new competitors with Blue Goan. When I found out, I was furious and went to attack him face to face. Since he had already wasted so much power in so many useless wars within the family, and because I had stayed out of those events, my remaining amount of Goan was much more abundant than his. I witnessed his reserves of power depleted in the middle of the fight and then I had no mercy on him. I ended his life in the most cruel and brutal manner. A very bitter triumph, because I let him transform me into one more of them. Anger possessed me and I did not believe I would be able to reverse it; I lost confidence in the human race. I surrendered my kingdom and went to live on my own, taking with me the only valuable thing I still had left, my dog Coro. Since then, we lived in the solitude of this cave for a long time, spending enough days to meditate upon the situation. It was hard to accept the person I became. I was an aggressive being at the slightest provocation, who had become egomaniacal after years on the throne. Someone with those qualities could not carry such a great responsibility like the blue Goan. That gift needed to be held by a person with kindness and nobility, qualities that in all my life I could only observe in my companion Coro. Because I could sense that he did not want me to give up, one day I decided to believe in him and make one last bet for humanity. I transferred a minimal amount of Goan to him (just enough to allow him to self-regenerate his health and prolong his life as long as necessary) and gave him a mission. I sacrificed myself to preserve the little Goan I had left by depositing it in this ethereal body. In the meantime, he would search for a worthy person to receive it, an individual with incomparable kindness and at the same time with perseverance and discipline in order to change the world. Today, Coro has determined that you are that person.
-Do you want me to receive blue Goan? That power no longer exists. -In disbelief- Besides, it must be very difficult to master it. Without prior training I could end up wasting it all.
-Blue Goan is not completely extinct yet, look at Coro. He now emits a violet color because I'm sure he must have also received red Goan and ended up mixing it with his blue aura. If he could control it, you shouldn't be afraid. Everything will be fine, just try to make better use of it than we did in our time. You do not have any specific mission, just do with this gift what you consider most beneficial to the world. I place my trust in you, reach out your hand and my Goan will be yours.
Mity barked towards Leiza, inviting her to do as Tebh asked. She stretched out her arm and both their hands touched. The blue silhouette began to be slowly absorbed by Leiza, as her hair and muscles twitched in the process of the energy being introduced into her body. When the silhouette acquired a very small size, a last phrase was heard, generating echoes inside the cave:
-I love you, Coro!
Tebh's bluish figure disappeared, leaving Leiza and Mity alone inside the cave.