I had to follow the two boys as I had no idea where she made her home within the tower. We climbed upwards, higher than I had been before. I kept looking out of windows to see the city get smaller and smaller beneath me.

Suddenly, the two boys disappeared inside a corridor. It was dark. I trailed my hand along the wall to avoid walking into it. I felt like I was burrowing a deep hole within the mountain like a blind creature. The boys stopped, I felt Ta’oma’s hand reach out to stop me too.

“She’s up ahead, is this eccentric enough for you yet?” laughed Ta’oma.

“Is she blind?” I asked.

“How did you know?” retorted a startled Ta’oma.

“It’s not the most difficult deduction,” said Jamie. “We have just walked down a pitch-black cave after all.”

“Exactly,” I agreed. Ta’oma sighed.

“Well, anyway. You can take it from here,” he said and started to walk away, Jamie followed.

“See you later, and good luck!” he said while patting me on the shoulder.

I walked further in until the wall opened into a room. I was nervous. My body had yet to be enhanced so seeing in the dark was an impossibility. There were plenty of techniques to generate light but I felt that relying on my eyes here was exactly what not to do.

I had to think for a while about what the test was aiming to achieve. Perhaps its purpose was to punish an over-reliance on sight. Maybe it was a chance to see my techniques.

None of these felt right. I sat down, thinking. It was obvious. I reasoned. Trust. Many things were shared between Master and disciple. The most important, by a long way, was trust.

How would I display trust in this scenario? I got up and began walking, unafraid of my surroundings. Unafraid of my lack of vision. Each step I took liberated me from worry and fear.

I kept onward, putting one foot confidently in front of the other. Sure enough, I remained safe; whether that meant I had passed the test though, I was still unsure.

I never let my trust waver, with the length of this tunnel I was sure I had inferred correctly the intention of this test.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

I felt something small and soft press my forehead, stopping me in my tracks. “Well done, boy.” A voice, clear and smooth melted into my ears abating the empty silence. “You’re the first one,” she said.

“If you wanted an introspective, you chose the wrong sect,” I said with a giggle.

“Don’t I know it,” she sighed. The finger that had poked my forehead moved to the side of my face joined by the rest of her hand. Eventually the other came up to touch the other side of my face.

“How old are you?”

“17”

“Soul Root?”

“Chaotic Rose,” I replied as I felt her qi enter me to check my cultivation level.

“You are slow,” she said as she grasped my strength in seconds.

“I was,” I corrected.

“No matter. At least you came,” she said with obvious relief. She was done with my face now and started making her way down my body, checking my build.

“Not bad,” she said as she finished her examination. “I can work with you.”

“I feel the same way,” I said jokingly.

“It’s been so long I’ve forgotten how exactly to train disciples,” she continued, ignoring me. “There’s so much I don’t even know where to start.”

I could not see what was happening but her silence meant she was probably pondering. “Ah, yes! Introductions. My name is Elder Laaka, would you like to be my disciple?”

“Master,” I said as I knelt in traditional fashion. “My name is Lai Sen’o, and I would love to be your disciple.”

“Good, good. I’m glad. To begin with, I need for you to be able to navigate the darkness by the end of the week. Also, complete two missions so that I can finally step into the Elder’s Call.”

“Elder’s Call?”

“It’s nothing you have to worry about boy, I mean… Sen’o.”

“Alright,” I shrugged, this was the trust coming into play. If she said I didn’t have to worry about it then I wouldn’t.

“Here take this,” she said whilst grasping for my hands. “Get the technique: Eyes of the Mountain God. Are you trained in any weaponry?”

“Some, but I don’t have a preference,” I said whilst taking the smooth wooden thing she gave me.

“Then take a bow, the eye technique will facilitate it perfectly.”

“Yes, Master.”

“Take this, you have to show it to one of the dwellers if you want to get a weapon.”

“Thank you,” I said as I took something else. I’d have to examine them properly after I have escaped the perpetual darkness.

“No, thank you. I was beginning to give up on this place,” she said. “Oh, and one last thing. I know the nature of your soul root, just avoid Elder Babive and any of his disciples, they’re bad news.”

I left slightly overwhelmed with the amount of new information to process. After finally clearing the tunnel, light assaulted my eyes. Even the dimness of the tower felt like a star was introducing itself to my eyeballs.

I made my way back down the tower. After the morning excitement and the afternoon’s revelation, I was ready to sleep. I approached my little cave, Safi was meditating on the mat. Why she was doing so in my room was beyond me but I settled down on the bed nonetheless.

I was just about to sleep when I saw a green feather. It was stuck forcefully into my bedpost. I pulled it out. It was the same as the previous one, devoid of qi. I stroked it, wondering what it meant. I fell asleep with it in my hand.

I woke up to a scream.