Chapter 6 - Mountain on the Sea

Melodi was sitting down on the floor in her room. She kept her eyes closed as she imagined a seed sprouting in her mind. Perhaps it was her imagination, but she felt like she was becoming stronger with every passing second. Melos watched her, staying silent. Melodi would have continued, except the ship started to move. Melodi instantly opened her eyes.

“Are we setting sail?” She asked excitedly. She rushed outside of the room, leaving Melos and Kuren behind. Melos scowled as he got up and walked after her. He looked behind him at Kuren.

“You coming?” Melos said. Kuren glanced at him and then followed after him.

* * *

Melodi was standing on the main deck. She was leaning against the railings along the side of the ship. She looked towards the wall of fog ahead. Melos walked up next to her.

“Is the fog going to clear soon?” Melodi asked. Melos nodded.

“Any moment now.” As Melos answered, Melodi felt a sudden breeze. The wind was picking up. The sailors on board began to shout at each other in preparation. Kuren slowly walked up and joined them. The three of them watched the Mist begin to twist and turn. The wind began to howl and scream.

And then, the Mist split in two.

“Set sail!” The sails were unfurled. The anchor was reeled back in. And the ship began to move forward. Aided by the shrieking gale, it made its way toward the Mist. Melodi watched with wide eyes as the ship sailed through the hole in the Mist. And a few moments after they made it through, the Mist began to close. The wind still hadn’t died down; if anything, it was even stronger than before.

“As long as this ship keeps following the wind, we’ll make it to Antiqua safely.” Melos spoke reassuringly. He looked at Melodi. She was still looking at the Mist around her, surrounding the ship on all sides. “We’ve got four days of sailing, so you’ll have plenty of time to look at the sea.”

He grabbed Melodi’s arm. “Now it’s time for more training.” He dragged her back to their room as she weakly protested.

* * *

“Practice Zhang. If you can’t get this, then there’s no point in continuing this apprenticeship anymore.”

“Alright, alright.” Melodi grumbled. “It’s not my fault that you’re giving me these stupid instructions. I’m supposed to imagine a growing seed? What type of technique is this?”

Melos smacked her on the head swiftly, and Melodi stopped complaining. She cursed him under her breath, but then she began her training after a little bit. She began to close her eyes and clear her mind once more. And she imagined a seed inside her chest. She imagined it sprouting and growing.

And Melos let out a sigh. “Hey! How do you expect me to get this down instantly? It’s kind of hard when you’re breathing down my neck!” Melodi angrily shouted. Melos shrugged.

“Can you just hurry up with this? I don’t want to spend these four days just teaching you Zhang.”

“Didn’t you tell me that most people don’t even learn this whole Jing stuff? And yet you expect me to learn it in less than a day.”

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Melos shook his head. “Whatever. I don’t really feel like watching over you right now. Come find me when you learn Zhang.” Melos walked out of the room, leaving just Kuren and Melodi by themselves.

Melodi looked at Kuren and sighed. “I guess it’s just you and me now.” Seeing that Kuren didn’t have a response as per usual, Melodi went back to training.

* * *

Melos didn’t return for hours. Once he did, he found Melodi sitting down with her eyes closed. He nudged her with his foot. “How long have you been training?”

Melodi jumped up with a start. “Oh hell you scared me!” Melodi’s stomach suddenly growled.

“Huh, I guess I’ve been here ever since you left. I didn’t even realize how hungry I was.”

“You were training so hard that you forgot to eat? Now that doesn’t sound like the Melodi I know.” Melos grinned. Melodi glared at him.

“Whatever, I’m going to go get some food now.” Melodi got up and left the room. Melos watched her back as he thought to himself.

An entire day had almost gone by, and she still hadn’t managed to use Zhang. Most people would never learn Zhang, but Melos had given her specific instructions. He had even forcibly inserted Jing into her body. She should have managed to use some form of Zhang by now. But her body still hadn’t absorbed any more Jing since then.

Melos raised his hand and a blue orb appeared in his hand. “Nothing seems to be wrong with the Jing around here.” But then he noticed something off. He observed the orb in his hand a little closer. It seemed to be wavering ever so slightly. As if his control was a little off right now. He frowned. He began to release the Jing in his hand. He watched closely as blue particles began to move in the air. They flowed slowly but surely towards one point in the room.

Towards the boy that stared at Melos with blank eyes. Melos began to release more Jing into the room. And sure enough, all the Jing flowed towards Kuren.

Melos raised an eyebrow. “Interesting.” He moved closer towards Kuren. “Tell me, boy. What are you thinking of right now?”

He stared into Kuren’s eyes. “Your mind… it must be clear right now. Empty of all thoughts. A blank canvas.” He raised a finger and pointed at Kuren’s forehead. “You were listening to me before, weren’t you?”

“I told Melodi to imagine a seed. To imagine it growing and sprouting. I didn’t think that you would be listening too.” Melos smiled. “Do me a favor, will you? Stop it. Let the girl have her turn.”

Kuren stared back into Melos’ eyes. They both stayed silent. After a long pause, Kuren slowly nodded.

“Good.” Melos released more Jing into the room. And it no longer flowed towards Kuren. Blue Jing particles stayed floating in the air. Melos smiled as he looked at Kuren. “Not bad.” The Jing flowed back towards Melos and he stopped looking at Kuren. Without another word, Melos plopped down on the bed and ignored Kuren. Kuren stopped looking at Melos and looked towards the door. Kuren got up and left, leaving Melos alone.

* * *

Melodi stuffed herself at the ship’s dining room. The food wasn’t that great, but Melodi had never cared about the taste. She just never wanted to go hungry again. Once she finished her meal, she walked back towards the room. She made sure to walk back onto the main deck before returning. The wind howled in her ears as she watched the Mist twist around her. It was a surreal sight, and it was one that she had never seen before.

She felt that place was perfect. Perfect for training. She sat down on the deck. She closed her eyes. She let the wind drown out all the other noise. She let it drown out all the thoughts in her mind. There was nothing left in her head but the howling wind. And then she began to imagine a seed. A seed buried deep within her body. Her blood flowed around it and her heart surrounded it. With every heartbeat, the seed grew. Every passing second, it grew. And it began to sprout.

She felt her breath become lighter. The wind howling around her began to quiet down. She heard her own soft breathes. She could feel the wind blowing against her skin. And then she began to see. Her eyes were closed, but she could see glowing, blue particles though her eyelids. And she could see them moving towards her. She could feel herself becoming filled with energy. She could feel Jing.

“Not shabby, little girl.” Melodi’s eyes opened with a start. She looked around and saw a man in front of her. And she felt a chill go down her spine. A face with a long scar across its right eye looked down on her. The man carried a huge sword on his back. The sword was almost taller than Melodi. And the man himself was gigantic. The wind whipped the cloak around the man, making him look even more menacing. The scar on his face was a furious red, pulsing like mad.

“I’ve been waiting for you.” The man smiled. It wasn’t much of a smile. It was as if he was a wolf baring its teeth at its soon-to-be prey. “I’m excited to see what the apprentice of Melos has in store for me.”

The man chuckled. Melodi didn’t feel like laughing with him. “W-who are you?” She asked weakly.

The scarred man scratched his chin. “Is there much point in telling you my name?” He was talking to himself. “Hmmm. I guess it would be rather rude not to.” He looked at Melodi. “The name’s Dashan. I’ve been looking for your master for quite a few years now. And now that I’ve found him, I’m going to have some fun with his disciple.” He chuckled again.

Melodi felt weak. She was all too familiar with that laugh. With that look in his eyes. With that filthy grin. “N-n-no… stay away…” She began to feel a sense of panic creeping in.

Why was it happening again so soon? Why was this happening to her again? She thought that it had ended. “N-not again. Not ever again!” She shouted. She drew her sword and gripped it with sweaty, shaking hands.

Dashan smiled and drew his sword. It was incredibly long; it was a claymore. It was incredibly sharp; it was deadly. He let it fall onto the deck. The wood splintered and broke as the sword fell down.

“Hehehe, let’s have some fun, girl. How ‘bout you tell me your name, sweetie? I’d like to know before I break you.” Dashan laughed wickedly.

“Shut up, you filth!” Melodi bared her teeth. She charged at Dashan, sword held in both hands. The wind howled around them and the ship rocked wildly in the waters. A girl raged against the mountain of man on the sea.