Chapter 5
“Okay,” Kopius murmured. “So where does the Variant come into play?”
“When neither your Combative or Non-Combative choices align with the Universe, you will get a Variant. It consists of both of the aforementioned.”
“That kind of sounds like you get an extra Practice. Isn’t that a good thing?”
“Once the Practices are selected and given,” Oh-jin returned to lecturing, “the trials begin. You are given trials—challenges for both the Combative and Non-Combative Practices, starting with the Practice that was given to you. Instead of the Fighter example, let us use the Merchant. Let us say Cici here picks Merchant as one of his three Non’s and the Universe picks it as well. Cici will be given his extra boons and a set of challenges for Merchant. He will have to finish those challenges before he can start any challenges for the other Non’s. Meanwhile, he can also work on the challenges for the Combative side at the same time.”
Oh-jin paused in his lecture to let it all sink in. Cici had dozed off at some point and was half way sloughed in a chair, his thick beard resting on his chest. Kopius had a thousand-yard-stare going as he parsed more information. There were a lot of ‘if-then, and-or’ statements that could play out and at first Kopius was overwhelmed. Sometimes gathering his thoughts was more difficult than the problem at hand. After he brushed the dust off the logical side of his mind he realized there were really only four outcomes:
* He and the Universe agree on the Combative Only
* He and the Universe agree on a Non-Combative Only
* He and the Universe agree on the Combative and one of the Non-Combatives
* He and the Universe do not agree on anything, gets Variant
It took several moments until Kopius made a sour face, like someone had flatulence issues, and then asked for clarification. “So if I get the Variant, I have to finish both of those before I can do the ones I picked?”
“Correct.”
“But in order to get a Variant I would have to miss on both Combative and Non-Combative?”
Oh-jin nodded in agreement.
“If most of us are going to live a peaceful life then why is a Combative given out most of the time?”
“I did not say peaceful,” Oh-jin said sternly. “These are people who do not seek out violence nor would it be their first recourse of action! They are still defenders, protectors of what they hold dear— at least, some of them are.” Oh-jin straightened out his shirt and brushed off a few chalk marks before continuing. Kopius kept his mouth closed for the moment, unsure as to if he had hit a sore spot. “Why so often the Combative? My guess would be that when choosing the Non-Combative Practice, people pick the ones they are familiar with, ones they already know they know. A person picking Carpentry probably works with wood already, or they choose Sailor because they already spend much of their time on boats. They are familiar, comfortable with the Practice. Someone that sews will likely not choose Blacksmithing, just as someone deep into books would likely not choose Guardsman. Does this clear your mind?”
Kopius nodded his understanding, opting to remain quiet.
“Good,” Oh-jin replied and then quickly raised his hand with just the pointer finger up. “IF, the Universe were to match you on a Non-Combative Practice that is a strong indication that a life of violence should mostly be avoided. That, if you pursue a Combative life, that life will most likely be short and painful. Is that part clear?”
“Crystal.” Kopius replied like an exhausted student.
“Crystal?”
“Crystal clear,” Kopius replied with some more umph, this time giving a thumbs up.
Oh-jin shook his head.
“I understand, I get it,” Kopius clarified with some attitude. “You guys don’t have crystals here or what?”
“We have crystals, plenty. The Covens adore them; hoard them even. There is nothing ‘clear’ about them though, even the colorless.”
“Well, where I come from we have clear crystal. Someone asks you if something is ‘clear’ the person they are asking would reply ‘crystal’. It's crystal clear. ”
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“Hmmm…” Cici rumbled in his chair, distracting the two men. His head started to sway side to side and then it shook aggressively before he woke with a jolt.
“Sorry lads,” Cici half coughed, wiping away any drool that may have formed. “Nothing like a quick nap,” he said with a groggy smile.
The big man smacked his lips a few times before standing and making his way out of the small office space, presumably to relieve himself somewhere in Kickshaw. The two men watched as Cici, in a rare moment of gracelessness, stumbled his way out of sight. The pause gave Kopius a moment to collect his thoughts and consider the things that Oh-jin had said so far.
The message Kopius was hearing was that just because someone can adventure doesn’t mean they should. However the system worked here, it gave indications on what the realistic path should be. At least, it gave strong hints on where to focus your energy.
According to Oh-jin, no one was bound to be what the Universe suggested. You were only required to complete the challenges associated with its choice, then you could move on to your own selections. Once you were done with what the Universe was talking about, you could all but forget it ever happened. This way forward is not for the faint of heart though. Oh-jin gave some examples of successes but cautioned that these were and are very rare in their occurrences. When Kopius said, That's some ‘diamond in the rough’ bullshit right there, Oh-jin had nodded his head in a ‘let’s just move on’ wobble.
“You're spending a lot of time explaining the Variant, you know.” Kopius finally commented.
Oh-jin nodded his head in agreement.
“Almost feels like you think I’m going to get it.” Kopius continued, as Cici returned from his brief adventure and sat back in his chair. “It seems like you are setting me up for that.”
“What are we setting up, lads?” Cici asked with a clap of his hands.
“I was just explaining to young Kopius here the Universal system of Practices. We were discussing Variants… and crystals.” Oh-jin peeped.
“Ahhh, yes.” Cici replied, adjusting his seat. “Know thyself and the way becomes clear.”
“I haven’t heard that recited in eons!” Oh-jin said with a hearty laugh.
“My mum used to sing it to me for sleep,” Cici said with some solemnity.
“I’m sure she had a lovely voice,” Oh-jin replied respectfully.
“That she did, Oh-jin,” Cici said with a genuine smile, as if he could hear her words now. “She had a voice that could entertain the stars and bring light to the darkest of dungeons. She could also sound like the crashing thunder if you got unhinged. So, you had to keep that in mind.” There was a pause in the discussion, though it appeared Cici was at first stung by the memory, he now sat in a comfortable silence. Oh-jin and Kopius let him have the moment.
“So,” Cici said after the moment passed, clearing his throat. ”Have you chosen your way forward yet Kopius?”
“Like I was saying,” Oh-jin interjected, “I was explaining, in detail, the Variant. Kopius was pointing out that I have spent a lot of time on the subject. So much so that he feels I am readying him for that outcome.”
“Sounds about right,” the big man said with a beard scratch.
“Why do you say that?” Kopius said, entering the conversation defensively.
“You lack a sense of decisiveness, my friend,” Cici replied with his hands up like, ‘I’m just calling it how I see it.’
“I can make decisions!” Kopius countered.
“I don’t think he meant it that way Kopius,” Oh-jin said, “Resolute might be a better way to say it, I think?”
“Resolute!” Cici practically shouted with a snap of his fingers, “Thank you, Oh-jin! You have said it yourself Kopius, you second guess yourself; make mistakes when you have time to think.”
“That’s why I didn’t play shortstop,” Kopius said absently. His mind had wandered off to a baseball game where his coach had switched him from third base to shortstop because Cory had better range than the other guy. Cory preferred third base, also known as ‘the hot corner’ because of the substantial speed the ball travels when hit there. Well, the ball felt like it took twice as long to get to him at shortstop and in those extra moments he had time to think. Long story short; errors were made.
“Okay,” Kopius said, breaking himself from his memory. “So you both think I am going to get the Variant?”
Cici gave an emphatic nod while Oh-jin seemed more sympathetic but still nodded in agreement.
“Really?” Kopius spat out. “You guys think I am so far out of touch with myself I won’t even get the Non-Combatives right?”
Cici had never really stopped nodding from the first question so when this one came out the big guy just nodded a bit faster. Oh-jin gave a non-commital shrug.
“Fine. Whatever. You know what? Fuck it. Nevermind. Like–like, did you guys just pick your shit correctly?”
The two men looked at each other before both slowly nodding in the affirmative.
Sometimes the honesty was a bit much. He hadn’t even made a selection and he was already feeling several steps behind. Kopius was teetering on a level of immaturity that he usually tried to avoid. Aside from acting like an uninformed, ill-tempered teenager, he also dropped a few levels in the vocabulary department.
“Swearings easy. There’s nothing special about it.” Papa would lecture when Cory would drop an accidental f-bomb. “Anybody can do it. I can teach a baby to swear. You have to be bigger than that; smarter than that. Call someone a smug prick instead of an asshole and you’ll understand what I mean.” Papa would wink, Cory would giggle; the world was right for a moment.
“Alright guys,” Kopius said as he tried to breathe through the budding anxiety. “Let’s just get this show on the road, okay?”