Chapter 5 - Pounding Prayer

They arrived at Viminello. Melos had already told Melodi that Viminello was a port city, so she was expecting to see ships and harbors. But she wasn’t prepared for the sight of the sea.

“Wha- what is that…” Melodi pointed in awe. Past the city, past the harbor, and past the ships, was a great wall of fog and mist. It floated on top of the sea and completely surrounded the land for as long as the eye could see. She couldn’t even see through because the mist was too thick.

“That is the Mist. It surrounds the continent of Alurca, and it is why the people of this land cannot explore the sea beyond. Not a single sailor who has set sailed into the Mist has ever returned.”

“Wow.” Melodi stared at the Mist in front of her. It stretched up towards the sky, almost blocking out the sun. “Wait a minute! You want us to sail through there!”

Melos grinned. “Calm down. Every month, the winds blow in a specific pattern. The Mist parts for a single day, and Viminello sends her ships through on that day. After the ships pass through, the Mist closes. Then the ships follow the wind as they make their way north to Antiqua. It’s a four day trip through the Mist, so we’ll have more time to train along the way.”

“I need to go get us on one of this ships, so you stay here and take care of the boy.” Melos gestured towards their silent companion.

Melodi looked at him and said, “His name’s Kuren.”

“Yeah, whatever. Just make sure you don’t wander too far away.” Melos left Melodi as he walked towards the harbor.

And so Melodi was alone. Well, she wasn’t alone; she had someone with her. Melodi glanced at Kuren. He stared back blankly. She let out a long sigh.

Kuren may look like a normal boy, but he sure didn’t act like one. He still hadn’t said a single word. He hadn’t even made a sound yet. Melodi had offered Kuren food and drink multiple times, but he never responded. Nothing seemed to affect the boy, and Melodi didn’t know how to act around him.

“Come on now.” Melodi grabbed Kuren’s hand. The two went off to explore the city of Viminello by themselves. They wandered the city, looking at the sights. Every now and then, Melodi would find herself staring at the great Mist surrounding the city. And Kuren would just stare at Melodi, as if she was his entire world.

The two came upon an ornate building when bells suddenly began to ring. The two watched as many of the city folk began to enter the building.

“You two going to pray?” A burly man stopped and asked Melodi and Kuren. He held the door open and waved at them. Melodi was a little curious, so she nodded and led Kuren inside. When they entered, Melodi was surprised by how many people were inside. There was so much noise and commotion that Melodi couldn’t help but feel a little frightened.

“QUIET DOWN!” A man at the very back of the building stood upon a podium and shouted. Almost instantly, the crowd became silent.

“At dawn, we wake and pray alone. At noon, we gather and pray together. At dusk, we eat and pray with family. Today is just like any other. We gather here to pray. But today is special. Because today, the Mist parts. Today, our ships set sail. Today, we pray to Divaelum, God of Storms. We pray to strong winds. To fast currents. To a quick voyage.”

The man raised his hands. Everyone in the crowd followed his example.

“Precaro Divaelum.” The man chanted, and the crowd repeated it after him.

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Melodi felt as if she was being swept away by the momentum of the crowd. The man’s voice was so strong and confident. The crowd echoed his every sentence and it made Melodi’s ears ring.

“We pray to Divaelum. Savior of the Sea, Conquerer of the Coast, Omnipotence of the Ocean. Bless us as we set sail today.”

The crowd burst into cheer and applauded. Melodi felt as if the crowd of people were crushing her slowly, so she grabbed Kuren’s hand and made her way outside.

As she made it through the front doors, she took a deep breath. She didn’t realize it before, but her heart was beating rapidly. All those people shouting with so much energy… it made her remember some bad memories. Her head began to ache and drops of sweat fell onto the ground from her head. She shut her eyes as she tried to drown out the noise. And then she felt a tight squeeze on her hand. She opened her eyes and looked at Kuren. He looked back right into her eyes. She gave a weak smile.

“Thank you.” She said softly as she patted his head. After waiting for a response in vain from Kuren, Melodi gave up and decided to go back and look for Melos.

* * *

Melodi walked back to the place where Melos had left them, and sure enough he was waiting for them there.

“I thought I told you not to wander off.” Melos scowled. “I found us a ship, but it leaves in less than a hour. So let’s hurry now.”

Melodi nodded and they made their way towards the harbor. When they came upon their ship, Melodi was shocked by just how large it was. “This thing is huge!” Melodi’s mouth was wide open in awe.

“Yeah, it’s carrying a lot of cargo.” Melos glanced at Melodi and frowned. “Stop gawking! Let’s get on board now.”

The three of them boarded the ship and found their room quickly. As Melodi began setting down her belongings, Melos sat down on the bed.

“Alright. Now it’s time for some training.”

Melodi groaned. “We haven’t even left the harbor yet, and we’re training…”

Melos smiled. “No need to be so upset. We’re doing something a little different today.” Melodi became a little curious after hearing those words. She put down her bags and faced Melos.

“These past few months, you’ve been going through physical training. Now it’s time for a little change up.” Melos suddenly stood up from the bed. Before Melodi could react, Melos gave a swift chop to the top of Melodi’s head. Melodi opened her mouth to yell at Melos, but she let out a groan instead. She suddenly felt sick to her stomach. She fell to her knees, clutching her stomach as she did so.

“What the hell is going on?” She moaned as the room spun around her. Melos smiled down at her. His face seemed to be bending and twisting.

“Don’t worry. You’ll feel better in a few seconds. Your body just has to get used to this new sensation.”

And right on cue, the feeling of sickness disappeared. Melodi suddenly felt much lighter. She climbed back up on her feet, and then she fell backwards right back onto her butt.

“What the…” The room seemed much more vibrant now. The colors around her flashed at her and she had to blink rapidly to stop it from burning her eyes. Her own words made her ears ring and echo.

“Alright, stop fooling around.” Melos grabbed her arm and pulled her up. When his fingers touched her arm, they felt hot, almost burning. Melodi shut her eyes tightly and then opened them after waiting a little bit.

“What… was that?” Melodi asked nervously. She looked around the room. Everything seemed… clearer. She felt like she could notice the tiniest detail in the wooden walls around her. She could make out the dust particles floating in the air. She could spot a little bug making its way down from the ceiling.

“A taste of real power.” Melos spoke. “What you just felt is the sensation of Jing.”

“Jing?”

“Yes. All living things have a life force or energy inside them. That energy is called Jing. You’ve had it inside you this whole time, but you just never noticed. Most people never realize their entire lives.”

Melos raised his hand in the air.

“Jing is the true power of humanity. By using it, we can become stronger and faster. And we can use many techniques to harness its power.”

A blue sphere suddenly appeared in Melos’ hand. It floated in the air, and the room seemed to dim when it appeared. Melodi gasped as she saw it.

“Most people cannot see Jing, and you were no different a few seconds ago. But I forcibly blasted Jing inside of you to give you… a little kickstart. Your body has now become much more sensitive to the presence of Jing, and now you can see this ball of Jing in my hand.

Before you can learn my sword techniques, you must first learn the basic fundamentals of Jing. There are three main core techniques. The first is Zhang. By using Zhang, you can gather Jing inside your Jing Vessel. The Jing Vessel is what stores Jing inside your body. The second technique is Shao. It is the act of burning up the Jing inside your Vessel to use other Jing techniques. And the third technique is Tai. Tai is the unique characteristic of your Jing.”

“For now, I’ll have you practice Zhang. Your Jing Vessel hasn’t grown yet, so you can’t use any real techniques. Once you’ve practiced enough, we can move on to Shao.”

Melodi nodded at Melos’ words.

“Sit down.” Melos pointed at the ground. “Let me show you how to use Zhang. First, clear your mind.”

Melodi closed her eyes and began to clear her head of any stray thoughts.

“Now, envision a seed. Deep within your chest. Buried within your body.”

“Imagine it growing. Imagine the sun beaming down. Imagine it absorbing nutrients from its surroundings. Imagine it beginning to sprout.”

As Melos instructed Melodi, the ship began to move. As Melodi was introduced to the world of Jing, she began her very first trip on the sea.

And as Melodi was training, Melos watched over her. And Kuren watched them.