They stood in a circle on the padded floor, one foot on the inner thigh, palms together with thumbs touching the chest, eyes closed. All was silent in the studio. Domrik could hear his heartbeat behind his breath, and the other’s subtle breathing behind that. He kept his pace steady and slow at five breaths per minute, indirectly regulating his heart rate to thirty per minute.

A subtle Aetheric energy crawled through his body, making the micro-adjustments necessary for the balancing exercise. His awareness extended into the field around him sensing his student’s attempts to emulate him. Some were stabilizing themselves well, but a few were struggling.

Within seconds of him noticing, a foot stepped on the padding, followed by a feminine sigh. The game had certain rules, the breaking of which resulted in elimination. The foot can’t leave the inner thigh or adjust itself, the palms cannot separate nor thumbs leave the chest, and the eyes must be completely shut. Nobody talked, as talking took concentration away from balancing. If one was eliminated, one had to jog the perimeter of the studio until the last person balancing lost their balance.

As the student began their reluctant walk to the studio’s perimeter, Domrik shifted his focus to get a better sense of their energies. He was intrigued when he realized it was Kelly. Though she was new to the level seven class, she was already proficient at the balance game.

Just before recentering his attention, he noted the agitated undercurrents of Kelly's energy. He made a mental note to talk to her after today's session.

A few minutes elapsed before the next student fell, Pranley. He was second newest after Kelly. His energy was more difficult to sense, evidence to Domrik that he was trying too hard, which was blocking the natural Aetheric flow. He would learn in time.

When half of the participants were left balancing, Domrik noticed a subtle shift in the ambient Aetheric field. He thought he'd imagined it at first, but after being with the feeling for a minute, he realized there was more of an alert nature to it. It was as subtle as a small air temperature increase. He wondered if anyone else sensed it. Jase probably did; he was one of the most sensitive students. Domrik didn't get any impulses as he did a few times in the past. Those impulses usually led to important insights. Jase claimed one such impulse led him to see Zandith's assassin-soldier pursue Hector's family.

The only thing he could discern from the shift was that something big was going to happen somewhere, soon. He sensed the eagerness in his gut urging him to inquire more, but he knew it would be pointless. He'd learnt years ago to make the Aether his ever-present guide. Ignoring its signals always had undesirable consequences. If it didn't give any signals, continue on as usual.

Another ten minutes passed. Only Domrik, Yuka, and Jase remained, while the others contributed to the rhythmic beating of bare feet on the inner perimeter of the studio. Domrik could predict almost to the second when Yuka fell this time. The three were deep enough in focus they could sense each other’s subtler energies, and Jase did start emitting a faint sense of concern, similar to what Domrik had felt minutes before. He was aware of the change now, and his subtle reaction to the change caught Yuka off-guard, who wasn’t used to that reaction from him. Her focus drifted too much. Within seconds, her body bent at an awkward angle in a futile attempt to maintain balance. She was eliminated.

Then there was just Domrik and Jase, two pillars of being, challenging each other to a duel of stillness. Minutes continued to pass. The panting of the eliminated joggers grew steadily louder, and he caught whiff of Kelly’s resentment directed at him. Part of it was because of how long she was kept jogging, but the other half was fueled by an urgent desire to talk with him. Curiosity pulled at his attention, but he stood his ground.

He smirked, a memory floating by, teasing him. It was of the first time Kelly had participated in this exercise. She had been astounded by how long Domrik could balance there. She had even shouted “Cheater!” through labored breaths from across the room. That had almost toppled him.

He had never lost the balance game before. Jase had come close several times, but Domrik had been practicing it for years before he became a teacher. He suspected, however, someone would trump him eventually. Each time he won, he tried to keep that in mind. It was those times when he became more eager to win, to prove himself, when he came closest to losing.

The energy shifted again, like coming in contact with a subtle ripple emanating from a far-off place. Suddenly, he felt less supported physically. It took him a few moments to realize the energy was directing him elsewhere. Towards Kelly, and oddly, his wristpad. He felt a twist of resistance in his chest as he cracked his eyes open. It was the mourning of his winning streak. His mind tried to justify the loss, saying that it wasn’t real because he had chosen to follow the impulse. He put those rationalizations to the side as he lowered his foot to the ground.

Jase’s face had a slight contortion of confusion, but his eyes were still closed, his palms still pressed together, and his foot still on his inner thigh. Domrik walked over with a gentle smile and held out his hand for a shake. Jase opened his eyes and before he could say anything, Domrik spoke. “Congratulations on your first victory. I’m sure it won’t be your last. And your next session is on me!”

Jase slowly lowered his arms and leg from the pose, then shook Domrik’s hand tentatively. He still wore the confused expression, as if Domrik hadn’t said anything. “Did you feel that?”

Domrik glances at the others, who had by now stopped jogging and were reconvening in the center where teacher and student stood. He nodded. “It was something significant, I’m certain.”

“What was?” Kelly asked, still panting hard with her hands on her hips.

“The shift,” Jase said, as though he was surprised she didn’t know.

“In the field?” she asked.

“Yeah.”

“Oh.” She rolled her eyes. “I had no chance of catching that today.”

“Yes,” Domrik interjected, “with a mind so focused on other things, which we can talk about in a moment if you wish.”

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Kelly nodded, relieved. “Privately.”

“Of course.” Domrik turned to address the rest of the group. “Excellent work today, fellow Konjukan. We witnessed a unique dynamic in the balancing exercise, and today I want you to leave remembering two things: One, inner balance leads to outer balance. The way in which you react to unexpected events determines that balance. The shift Jase and I felt was a pertinent example. And two, if you want to remain balanced within, it helps tremendously to assist in balancing others. In these sessions, I often stand longer than I do in my individual practice… Well, some of that could be attributed to my competitiveness, I suppose.” The group laughed, and he continued. “But do not blame yourself if others fall. It is still up to them to accept your help, and you others’.”

“What do you think the shift means?” Jase asked.

Domrik contemplated his answer for a few moments before responding. “Be ready to serve.”

Kelly groaned. “But you say that all the time! What happened in the shift?”

“The shift was subtle, so I can’t say what is going to happen, or where, or when.” He scanned the alert faces of his Level Seven class and felt a subtle pride of them. Alert but not afraid. It was a lost art that sorely needed to return to the masses. He shrugged. “I have never noticed a shift like this before. I wouldn’t be surprised if it appeared on the news within the next days or weeks. I will finish with this: Stay alert, and ready to serve.” He bowed, dismissing class. “May your Embers burn bright.”

They bowed back and dispersed to gather their things. Kelly followed Domrik to the bench on the side where his bag lay.

“What has your mind in a knot, today?” Domrik asked as he fished his wristpad from his bag.

“I saw someone at the hospital yesterday who’s condition made no sense.”

“What was the condition?” He asked as he strapped his wristpad to his forearm.

“An activated Vision Ember,” Kelly scoffed.

“And he was reporting the associated symptoms?”

“Yeah, and you’ll never guess who it was.”

“Brandon Norallis.”

Kelly glared at Domrik with an unspoken accusation. He reached out in apology as he giggled, “Sorry! I couldn’t help myself. Your thoughts are louder than usual.”

She tilted her head. “And can you guess why that’s the case?”

He took a moment to collect himself. “You’re jealous.”

She bit her lip as she processed his statement. He noticed it was significantly harder to hear her mental voice now. He would have to go into a much deeper state of consciousness to it as clearly as a few moments ago.

“Yes,” she admitted in a small voice. “I am, but I’m also afraid.”

“Of what?” He watched her expectant gaze until it occurred to him. “Oh… yes. That will make things volatile.”

Kelly blew out air with bulged cheeks. “I was really hoping you wouldn’t share my opinion. What can we do?”

He looked away in thought. The answer from before wouldn’t do. Of course being of service would help, but what kind of service? Forcing help on someone else wasn’t service. Sometimes the best service was to let them be as they were.

“Little, at the moment,” he said with a sad smile. “What did you tell him?”

“I asked him if he did drugs. He said it’d been years since doing blasphia. Then I told him the benefits of an activated pineal gland, whereupon he informed me he wasn’t interested. He just wanted the symptoms to stop.”

Domrik grimaced. “A volatile situation indeed. Did you ask what happened to him?”

She closed her eyes and tilted her head back. “No! That completely slipped my mind.”

“It’s fine,” he said, “that’s besides the point. It doesn’t matter. All that matters is that we have an unwilling human with access to powers that require years of training and dedication.”

“The lack of which will prove disastrous for everyone around him,” Kelly finished.

“Him as well,” Domrik added. “But if he’s unwilling to do any spiritual work, nothing we say will help, and it would probably make things worse.”

“Could we explain to him what will happen if he doesn’t do the work?”

He shook his head. “That would make him panic, even if what we say is true, but that’s not necessary. Whatever caused him his condition, it happened for a reason, possibly a reason nobody could have predicted. We have to trust he will find that reason.”

Lunchtime was soon, and he normally ate in the forests that surrounded the place. He picked up his bag and walked with Kelly to waiting area of the studio. “If he finds the reason, then he will be unwilling no longer.”

Kelly hung her head. “I know, I just hate the feeling of not being able to do anything about it. How can you keep your jovial attitude in a situation like this? You were the one who said something bad might happen.”

“That’s a story for another time… and I didn’t say something bad was going to happen.”

“You said it could be on the news.”

Domrik raised his eyebrows. “I did! Looks like my prediction had a negative bias after all. I thank you for your assistance in my discovery.” He put his hands together and gave a small bow in her direction. He caught her blushing when he looked back up.

She returned the bow, but with far less enthusiasm. “If I find anything else on Brandon, I’ll let you know. We have to take action at some point.”

“I agree,” he said as he glanced at his wristpad for the first time today. “But now is not that time… oh?”

“What?”

“Eleanor wants to talk. Right now, actually.” He started backing away from the waiting area in the direction of the library in the far back.

“I don’t think this is a coincidence!” Kelly called.

“We agree again!” Domrik replied as he pushed through the ornate double doors of the library. He was immediate hit with the smell of ancient paper. It was a smaller room with shelves lined to the ceiling with traditional books, some of them thick enough to be used as weights, others so worn they had lost their titles and authors. He called Eleanor as he sat in one of the old armchairs.

She answered promptly. “I believe something is going to happen soon.”

“So do I,” Domrik replied.

“Did you get his email?”

“He sent an email?” He laughed. “There are some things about him I’ll never understand.”

“I hope you understand him better than I do, because he said ‘Whatever happens next is on your hands.’” She spoke with disgust as she read the email.

“That’s it?”

“That’s it. Why do you think something will happen?”

Domrik paused. “Intuition.”

“A big enough change in the Aetheric Plane?”

“Really feels like it.”

She sighed. “Oh dear. Things are changing faster than I could have imagined. I even met Brandon yesterday at my anniversary party, and he’s been tuning into something strange recently.”

“Kelly told me all about it. His Vision Ember is highly active.”

“I know, he told me, so I told him to embrace it.”

“And he didn’t argue?”

“Well, initially, he did. Then he told me it started after an encounter with Zandith.”

Domrik sat up, eyes wide. “Zandith caused it?”

“The Ember activation was what saved Brandon from the ritual.”

“That kind of activation can be dangerous. Imagine the surge of energy! If he keeps resisting it like he is, it will build up. Are you sure teaching will be a good thing for him to continue in his state?”

Eleanor was silent for a moment. “That’s a great question, Dom. I’d like to think so.”

“You know him much better than I do, so do whatever is necessary to keep him sane.”

He didn’t need to explain further, as they both knew the forgotten history. If Brandon lost control and saw what he wasn’t ready to see, they would have another Zandith on their hands.