It took another month for James to finally form a link between both his inner and outer bodies. He stood on the roof of a broken down building, his hand covered in a film of water. In his mind, James and his master squared off for another spar.
They moved in that slow rhythm, back and forth in a steady beat. James kept the film of water over his arm the whole time, slowly getting used to its activity. As time went on, Nadia picked up the pace.
Punches flew faster toward James, the man blocking or dodging while sending out his own moves. Their slow rhythm became a dance, then a whirlwind as their speed increased. In the outside world, James slid across the concrete with grace.
Nadia finished with one last punch, James catching it in his palm. “Excellent, disciple. Now that you have established the link, we can work on improving your capabilities.”
She motioned for James to sit. “Your next task is to manipulate the water from your core and add it to your repertoire of moves.”
“I’ve been thinking about that,” James said. “How do I do that refraction you did?”
Nadia raised an eyebrow. “You do not wish to learn how to spin the water into a drill?”
James shook his head. “My art is more about grappling. If I can mask my approach it makes it harder for my foes to react.”
Of course, much of what James could learn now had stalled, the instructions for his martial art lost in Blue Mountain Sect. He’d have to build off what he had.
“A sensible choice, disciple,” Nadia said. She gave a teasing smile. “I fully expected you to choose the most destructive path like an overeager teenager.”
“My master thinks so little of me,” James lamented. “Truly, whatever will I do?”
“All that you can do is train until my opinion of you increases,” she answered.
James laughed, standing. “Okay, so how do I do this refraction thing?”
“First you must understand how water and light interact,” Nadia said.
James frowned. “That sounds suspiciously like more studying.”
“Truly your powers of foresight are great, disciple,” Nadia said. “Perhaps I should have handed you off to the Empire’s diviners.”
“Ha. Ha,” James said dully. He sat back down, placing his head in his hands. “Okay, let’s get this over with.”
He spent another month learning the properties of water and light. He learned to use the metastate to judge the angle of an opponent’s vision, his previous studies in dynamics helping him along. From there, it was a matter of arranging the water around him to trick his opponent.
Soon, James could make his attacks look as if they were coming from any angle, confusing even Nadia for a moment. Though only until she caught on to the trick and performed the refraction calculations in reverse. But those few success against his master were enough to prove that his choice was a viable option.
“With enough practice, you could even make your hand practically invisible, disciple,” Nadia said. “Though keep in mind that your tactic will fail if your water is disrupted.”
“I’m aware, master,” James said. “It’s why I’m keeping it close to my body and not spreading it out like you have.”
“That will weaken your defenses,” Nadia continued. “But I am sure you already know that.”
“I’ll come up with workarounds,” James said.
“Of that, I have no doubt,” Nadia answered. “Now, I believe it is time for you to practice on someone that isn’t your master.”
“On the outside, you mean,” James said.
“Correct,” Nadia answered. “We may even kill two birds with one stone.”
“How so?” James asked with a tilt of his head.
“I will not advise you to attack the servitor guards at the skyscraper,” Nadia said. “However, there are a number of beasts roaming the various floors. Collecting their materials will secure you credits when you return to Cyber Crane.”
“Are you sure I should be risking my life hunting beasts?” James asked. “Shouldn’t I practice more?”
“If you spend all your time practicing against me, you will only ever learn to beat one person,” Nadia said. “You must broaden your horizons, disciple. And learn to use your martial arts on more than just humans. A cultivator must fact many dangers.”
“I hate that you’re making sense,” James grumbled.
“I would not recommend it if it was not necessary,” Nadia said.
“No, I know,” James sighed. “Alright, I guess I should get ready for a hunt.”
“Pack light, disciple,” Nadia said. “You should be able to scavenge most of what you need as you travel.”
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“Don’t worry master,” James said. “I’ve picked up a thing or two while roughing it.”
James exited his mind, heading down from the roof toward his makeshift room. He packed a small roll of cloth he’d been using as a bedroll, a few emptied cans for water, and a few makeshift tools he’d crafted during the breaks in his training. He stored it all in his bedroll, tying it to one of his staffs and slinging it over his shoulder.
His hand ached a bit from the movement, but James pushed through it. His electric-burned hand had never quite healed correctly, and it gave him a stab of pain whenever he used it. A mortal would likely find the pain debilitating, but James used his bodily control to keep the pain in the back of his mind.
It wasn’t like he could do anything about the pain at the moment anyway.
His things collected, James made his way out of the building, selecting a random direction away from the skyscraper. At first, James only walked, his mind wandering as he scanned for signs of beasts. The idea that he might need to actively search for a beast only came to him after hours of wandering.
He blamed it on inexperience. His last hunt had him sitting on the back of another cultivator as they ran at impossible speeds across the land.
Which, James realized, he could likely do now that he had a core.
He resolved to ask Nadia about it the next time they trained. For now, he focused to try and find anything that might lead him to a beast. He searched the rubble for anything that might resemble a track, coming up empty.
“I’m going to have to make myself bait or something, aren’t I?” James asked himself.
It was all he could think of to do. That or ask his master.
“I should have done that first,” James said. “She would know what to look for.”
After chiding himself, James found a small nook and entered his mind.
“Back so soon, disciple?” Nadia asked.
“No one ever taught me how to track an animal, master,” James said pointedly.
She smiled. “I enjoyed watching you flounder like a fish.”
“Wait, you can see what I do outside?” James asked.
“I thought you knew, disciple?” Nadia asked. “Didn’t your parasitic passenger have the same ability?”
James realized that he had. “Master, I’m not sure if I enjoy you messing with me like that.”
“We need the humor, disciple,” Nadia said. “Else the both of us will grow depressed and ineffective. Better to dwell on happier things.”
James looked at his master suspiciously. “You know, your argument sounds compelling, but I bet it’s complete scrap. You just wanted to laugh at me.”
“I admit, I was hoping to see you find the tracks of a broken servitor thinking it was a beast to conquer,” Nadia answered. “Though, I am glad you thought to come to me before too long.”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m a moron,” James said blithely. “What else is new.”
“Come now, disciple, just because you have a one track mind doesn’t mean you are a moron. It just means you need to work on remembering there are multiple options.”
“Something I should be better at considering my fighting style,” James said.
“You often let your instinct take over when you fight,” Nadia said. “You move in reaction more often than not. That bypasses your tendency to commit to one action.”
“You’re telling me I should work on making options for myself, aren’t you?” James asked.
“That is up to you, disciple,” Nadia said. “Setting a goal and seeing it to the end can be just as effective as setting a thousand and hoping to succeed in one.”
“Great, more crypticisms,” James said.
“You made that word up,” Nadia answered mirthfully.
“I did,” James said. “It means overly cryptic words meant to confuse a poor disciple.”
“Then, let me teach you something more concrete,” Nadia said.
She delved into study, teaching James the art of tracking animals.
“Water is often your first step,” Nadia said. “A source of water is almost guaranteed to hold a number of beasts. From there, it is a matter of markings left on the ground. Look for footprints, pieces of fur or scale, chewed or shorn parts of the environment, and animal scat. All these signs can help point to the location of an animal.”
“How do I look for water?” James asked.
“In the wild, look for greener plant life,” Nadia said. “Insect life as well tends to signal nearby water. It will also be easy to hear if the water is moving, though I do not expect a river to exist anywhere in this decayed tower.”
“Anything else I should know?” James asked.
“The skill will not come easily,” Nadia said. “It will take many hours of practice to become an expert.”
“Just another day in the life of a cultivator then,” James said as he jumped back to the outside world.
He instantly took his master’s advice, climbing up the broken buildings to search for buzzing insects or lush green plant life. It took a day, but eventually James found a spot closer to the edge of the tower.
A series of vines worked together as a makeshift pipe system, catching condensed water and pooling it in a cracked depression on the floor. Green ferns, mosses, and other plant life had sprung up around it. The combined look of dripping vines and green plant life made the area look something like a hidden grotto. All it needed was a small waterfall with a hidden cave behind it.
James set his pack down on a building a distance away from the pool and waited. He yawned as the lights dimmed and dark took over. Lightning bugs appeared around the pool as the night came, their soft illumination twinkling like stars. James fell asleep to the sight, his mind nodding off despite his resolve to stake out the area.
He woke in the morning, his back stiff from sleeping at an awkward angle. The lights above pierced through his eyelids, slowly bringing him to consciousness despite his groaning complaints.
James opened his eyes to see a small group of hooved animals drinking at the pool. Brown, almost wood colored antlers rose from their head like antenna, their jagged lines looking unnatural on the animal’s heads. James instantly ducked low, hoping the beasts hadn’t seen him.
One’s ear twitched as James hit the ground. It looked up, but on seeing nothing, went back to drinking. James let out a sigh of relief, glad that his quick action hadn’t startled the animals.
He studied them some more as they drank. Other than their silver antlers, these deerlike animals had two metal fangs hanging out of their mouths. Scars ran along the animal’s back, an obvious sign of fighting.
The deer creatures finished drinking and started to move, wandering away from the basin and underneath some rubble. James stood as they left, grabbing his pack and moving down to follow.
He kept as far back as he dared, doing his best to use his master’s teachings to follow the animals. He spotted their prints in some dust and followed it along until patches of hair caught on a broken fence made him turn. However, at some point James lost the trail, his eyes unable to catch any signs of the animal.
James sighed, turning around to make his way back to the basin to try again tomorrow.
A low growl stopped him.
Out from the shadows walked the doglike animal James had encountered some time ago. It still looked the same, sleek fur and lolling tongue, but the pack around it had changed. A few of the animals James remembered from their first attack were gone, replaced by other starving canines.
They moved to circle around James, cutting off any hope of escape.
James in turn slid his pack to the ground and readied his staff. He called upon the metastate, entering it and conjuring a glove of water over his hands and feet.
The pack leader again gave that low undulating growl. James readied himself, settling into a stance with his staff at the ready.