The days following Somadina's advancement fell into a comforting routine. Mornings were dedicated to traveling and foraging for supplies, the trio moving through the savannah with purpose. As the sun climbed higher, they'd seek out shelter, usually beneath the sprawling canopy of an acacia or baobab tree. There, Somadina would prepare lunch, occasionally assisted by Kainene and Olisa.

But it was the evenings that held the most significance for Somadina. As the sun began its descent, painting the sky in vibrant hues of purple, red, and orange, his training would commence.

One concession he had to make early on was the timing of his cultivation. Olisa staunchly refused to rise before dawn, declaring it "unnatural," and Kainene had sided with him. This meant that Somadina's training sessions were relegated to twilight, when the last vestiges of daylight clung to the horizon.

On this particular evening, they had stumbled upon a hot spring, a rare oasis in the vast wastelands that was the Savage Lands. While Kainene and Olisa eagerly took the opportunity to indulge in its warm waters, Somadina sat cross-legged on the ground nearby. He watched them frolic with a mixture of envy and frustration, a sour expression etched on his face.

"Stop ogling us and concentrate on your cultivation," Kainene chided, her voice carrying over the gentle lapping of water as she dipped beneath the surface. "Your window will soon be over."

Somadina scowled at her but obeyed, closing his eyes with a resigned sigh.

"Now, focus on the world around you, just like we practised," Olisa's soft voice draped over Somadina like warm butter. "Try to sense the anwansi around you. You'll notice that they each have their signature."

Somadina did. Even through closed eyes, he could perceive the world in a way he never had before. Dominant over everything else was earth anwansi, brown plumes billowing forth from the ground like ethereal smoke. Also abundant was the rich green halo of life anwansi, coating the surfaces of elephant grass clusters scattered around. Dimly, Somadina could sense his own life anwansi, though a powerful shine – perhaps his soul? – kept him from getting a closer look.

A breeze picked up, tracing out light blue patterns in the air and setting the whistling thorns growing over the spring into a gentle song. Kainene and Olisa started taking dives into the pool, and Somadina 'watched' in fascination as thin tendrils of turquoise sound anwansi from the whistling thorns, orange flame anwansi from the pool, and brown earth anwansi from the rocks lining the spring rushed over to them. The anwansi settled over their skin, not absorbed but orbiting them in loose, cloud-like ribbons.

"Well?" Kainene's voice broke through his concentration. "Anything?"

Somadina sighed, frustration evident in his voice. "Nothing. It's all... It's just too much to sift through. I keep getting distracted."

He opened his eyes and immediately choked, a different sort of distraction taking over. Olisa and Kainene had emerged from the pool, water cascading down their bodies as they wrung moisture from their hair. A lump formed in Somadina's throat as he watched their toned muscles flex, dark skin gleaming in the evening light. They hadn't bothered to remove their underclothes before diving into the pool, and the fabric now clung tightly to their bodies, outlining in stark detail the hard nubs on Kainene's ample chest and the enticing V of Olisa's hips.

They finished wringing out the water and frowned at Somadina, oblivious to the effect they were having on him.

"Try harder. You shouldn't be playing with this at all," Kainene scolded. "Close your eyes and try again. Quickly. The sun's almost completely set."

Grateful for the excuse, Somadina obeyed, closing his eyes and willing away the heat in his cheeks and the agitation in his belly. You're being stupid, he chastised himself. Concentrate. Yet he couldn't resist sneaking one more peek at their rippling abs before shutting his eyes tightly and opening his senses to the world once more.

Now that he was actively searching for it, aware of the time crunch, it didn't take long before he spotted the indigo motes of dream anwansi floating in every direction. While the earth anwansi had felt strong and stable, and flame anwansi wild and free, this was slippery and ever-changing. It was like wind anwansi, yet not – as if it was everything and nothing all at once. Somadina found it challenging to describe precisely what he was sensing. But now that he had found it, he had no intention of letting it slip away.

Following the instructions drilled into him, he reached out and pulled, willing the motes of magic to flow into him. They obeyed, and then, as if he had opened a dam, the formerly gentle particles swarmed him. A river of indigo dove into his body, and it was all he could do to keep the tide controlled enough not to damage his core.

"Easy," Kainene's voice came from behind him, her hand settling on his shoulder. Olisa's hand found his other shoulder, grounding him. "Easy," she repeated. "You opened yourself too wide. It's too late now. Trying to close it could end up permanently damaging you. Remember what we taught you. Keep the anwansi spiralling in your core, I'll help you control the surge."

Somadina clenched his teeth, barely managing a nod as he tried to follow her instructions. The pressure started to ease the moment he completed the first rotation, but by the time the last ray of light vanished and the surge reduced to a trickle, Somadina was gasping and covered in sweat. He collapsed onto his back, heaving great gulps of air.

"You're not done yet," Olisa reminded him, though his voice held a note of pride. "You still have to cycle a little anwansi through your channels. Otherwise, the pressure will build until your core explodes." He smiled encouragingly. "You did well. Much better than me, in fact. Most people end up breaking something their first time."

Somadina grinned, allowing himself a moment of pride before sitting back up with a groan. Kainene and Olisa were now putting on their clothes, and he carefully avoided looking in their direction as he closed his eyes and focused on his core. Its previous white hue now brimmed with indigo, and he siphoned off a wisp of it, sending it running through his body channels. The gunk stayed the same to his mind's eye, but he could sense that a bit of it had melted off.

A thought occurred to him, prompting a question. "This corruption in our channels... Aberrations are made of it, right?"

Somadina opened his eyes to see Kainene nodding solemnly.

"In them, it's not just infused to their life anwansi, but in their souls as well. Twisting it into a dark version of itself." Kainene's gaze turned sad, distant. "It happened to someone I knew. He got bitten and... well... he was a piece of shit, and we weren't close. But it's not a fate I'd wish on anyone."

Somadina nodded, repressing a shudder. Direlings, while the smallest and weakest of Aberrations, were feared because they were the only ones that could create new ones–in the physical realm at least. One bite on anything that could cultivate – human, soul beast, or tree – and it would be overwhelmed by corruption and become an Aberration. Bites on animals, soul beast or otherwise, were rare, and bites on soul trees almost unheard of, but it was a fate every dibia, no matter their rank, feared.

Kainene nudged him, breaking him from his reverie. "Hey. Don't worry too much about it. Direlings are quite easy to kill, even for an Adept, and the higher ranked you are, the easier it is to resist their venom. There's a reason why they prefer sleeping prey."

Somadina nodded, giving a lopsided grin when she reached out and ruffled his hair. "Rest up. We'll make dinner for a change."

He saluted playfully, watching as she hurried over to where Olisa was bent over their supplies. The two began to argue good-naturedly over the best way to slice yams, their banter a comforting background noise.

Somadina leaned back on his elbows, observing his companions with a growing sense of warmth. As their quarrel moved on to the proper method of frying yams, he found himself smiling, truly at peace for the first time since his mother's passing. The savannah stretched out around them, bathed in the last light of day, and for a moment, all seemed right with the world.

***

After three days of intensive cultivation and cycling under the watchful eyes of Olisa and Kainene, they decided it was time for Somadina to learn how to use magic. While Olisa left to set up for the lesson, Somadina found himself seated cross-legged before Kainene, her nimble fingers working through his unruly hair.

He hadn't touched it since the night his mother died, and now it stuck up in every direction, defying gravity like some deep black cloud. Kainene's skilled hands tamed the wild strands, weaving them into neat braids that ended in a large knot at the back of his head. It was a style he hadn't worn before, but one he immediately appreciated.

"Thank you," Somadina said, admiring the workmanship with a small hand mirror. "I look great."

Kainene's lips quirked into a small smile. "I suspect that has more to do with you than my own skills," she replied, giving his head one final, affectionate pat. "Whoever worked on your hair before was a professional. I don't think I've seen such well-maintained hair before. Well, aside from Olisa's, of course."

Somadina's expression sobered, the shy smile slipping from his face. "It was my mother," he said quietly. "She was the one who styled it for me before... before she passed."

"Oh." Kainene paused, her hand hovering uncertainly over his shoulder. "I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"You couldn't have. I didn't tell you." His fingers found the betrothal necklace, tracing its familiar contours. "It happened three weeks ago. Remember those Direbeasts you warned me about? They came after me, and she... she died protecting me."

He swallowed hard, fighting back the lump in his throat. Kainene remained silent for a moment, her eyes filled with compassion.

"Wow, Somadina. I can't even imagine going through something like that." She gave him a rueful smile. "She must have really loved you."

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There was nothing to say to that, so they sat together in companionable silence, watching a herd of antelope grazing in the distance. The savannah stretched out before them, a sea of golden grass swaying gently in the warm breeze.

"You know," Kainene began tentatively, breaking the silence. "You haven't told me what happened when we left you. How you found a Sage's autobiography slash musings." She inclined her head upward, in the direction where Rai was soaring, hunting something. "And how you found her."

So, he did. Perhaps it was unwise, an alarming lack of judgement on his part, but when he opened his mouth and began to talk, he felt it all rushing out. He told her about the cave, what Omaliko's last words had been, and how he had made the artificial Ancestral Seed. He even shared details about his life in Omata, how tough things had been, and how Rai had found him, cold and alone.

Kainene listened intently, her brow furrowing in concentration. "It's incredibly rare for a soul beast to bond with a human," she said when he finished. "Very rare. I've only heard of a dozen or so cases, and all of them were Ordained or higher." She tilted her head, considering. "She must have seen something in you she liked."

Somadina looked up, watching as Rai hovered, then dove down, snatching an unfortunate sparrow out of the air. "What could it have been?"

"Hard to say." Kainene stifled a yawn, the blazing sun and oppressive heat making her drowsy. "Could be anything, honestly. Maybe she liked the colour of your hair. Or the way you smelled. Maybe she just wanted to see what it felt like to be close to a human. Soul beasts can be fickle like that." She paused, her expression turning thoughtful. "But I don't think it's that simple in this case. She isn't your run-of-the-mill soul beast."

"How so?"

"Well, for one thing, I can't read her at all. I don't know what rank she is. Haven't you noticed?"

He had noticed, but being so new to it as he was, he had just assumed he wasn't doing something right.

"Quite a bag of mysteries you're turning out to be," said Kainene with a smile. Somadina didn't reply for a moment, his gaze fixed on the triumphant loops his owlcat was performing in the sky above.

"The things my mother said. What the Sage said. It's all true, isn't it?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

Kainene's smile faded. "Unfortunately, yes. And it gets worse in the Courts of the Six. All those clans and families fighting for power." She frowned, a shadow passing over her face. "It's not so bad with regular folk. But the nobles, those who think that having their clan's name in front of their true name somehow makes them better than anyone else..."

Somadina stared at her in suprise. "But you guys are nobles."

Kainene's fists clenched, and the air around them warmed, then cooled almost immediately. "Yes, we are."

She looked so dejected about it that Somadina instinctively reached over and cupped her face, his touch gentle and reassuring.

"Hey. Don't be like that. Admittedly, I haven't met that many nobles except for the ones in Omata, and while they are mostly terrible people, I've learned enough about you two in the past few weeks to know that you're not the same. You're different."

Kainene scoffed, but there was a hint of a smile playing at the corners of her mouth. "You're just saying that because you like us."

Somadina giggled, the sound light and carefree. "True. But do I really need a better reason?"

Kainene returned his smile, and they stayed like that for what felt like an age, staring at each other. The world around them seemed to fade away, leaving only the two of them in that moment.

Olisa's gentle cough snapped them out of it, and their eyes jerked up to regard him, like children caught stealing from a hen's nest. Somadina looked at the hand still holding Kainene's face and snatched it away, as if she had burned him.

"You done setting things up?" asked Kainene, her voice just a tad shaky.

"Yes," Olisa replied slowly, watching them thoughtfully. "Everything's ready. Come."

Somadina dared a glance at Kainene before standing and following meekly, wondering if he had managed to ruin one of the few good things that had happened to him since his mother died.

***

Somadina managed to hold out until they were out of earshot before he finally cracked. The words tumbled out in a rush, his voice tinged with anxiety.

"I know what it looked like back there, but I swear nothing is going on between us."

Olisa's response was calm, a stark contrast to Somadina's nervous energy. "I know," he said, a pebble dancing along his fingers with casual grace. "I trust Kainene. And I've been with her long enough, through enough, to know what she would and wouldn't do." He glanced at Somadina, his gaze penetrating. "And I think I have a pretty good idea of what you would do by now. You're not that kind of person."

With a flick of his wrist, Olisa threw the pebble. It whistled through the air and embedded itself several inches into a nearby tree. Somadina goggled.

"Besides," Olisa continued, his tone matter-of-fact, "I heard most of what you guys were talking about. A perk that comes with having a sound affinity. So, I know, and I appreciate, what you were trying to do. Kainene gets very fragile if you let her get worked up like that. Thank you."

Before Somadina could process this, an arm was thrown across his shoulders. Olisa's contemplative manner had vanished, replaced by a sudden, wild grin. "Now, will you stop worrying over whether or not I'm going to murder you and pick up the pace so we can get to the targets I set up before sundown?"

Somadina blinked, momentarily stunned by the rapid shift in Olisa's demeanour. Then, hesitantly, he allowed a small smile to spread across his face. He relaxed, tension draining from his shoulders as he allowed himself to be led from the little pathway down to a clearing.

The space was devoid of anything but three giant mounds of earth, each one easily twice Somadina's height. They loomed before them, silent sentinels in the afternoon light.

"Took me a while to build these," said Olisa, admiring his handiwork with both hands resting on his hips. Pride tinged his voice as he added, "I probably should have gone for a single target, but why have one when you can have more?"

"Right." Somadina gave the mounds a single, bewildered look. "What am I supposed to be doing with them?"

Olisa's eyes sparkled with excitement. "Ideally, you're going to attempt to destroy them. But Kainene and I know so little about dream anwansi. Aside from the well-known illusions, in what other way can it affect the world? That's what we are going to try and find out. Today though, my main focus is teaching you, in general terms, how our magic works."

"Okay," Somadina said, mentally preparing himself. A thought occurred to him. "Don't I need a staff though?" Every dibia he had met so far seemed to have one.

Olisa considered this, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "A staff is a valuable asset for a dibia," he allowed. "Swords and spears are great if your bonded Firstborn allows for the cultivation of blade anwansi, and staffs are excellent for almost everything else. A weapon can help you focus your techniques. But for now, it's best you learn how to use your magic without one. Not every situation will see you armed, and it's better to be able to defend yourself either way."

Somadina nodded, storing all that away. Idly, he wondered if the dibias of Omata were taught such things and had to suppress the small surge of glee that accompanied that thought.

"Alright then. Let's begin," said Olisa, drawing his waist-length shirt up and over his head in one fluid motion. His sculpted torso gleamed in the sunlight. "You might want to consider taking off your clothes. Things could get quite messy," he added, looking like the thought caused him physical pain.

Recognizing the wisdom in Olisa's words, Somadina caught the shirt and trousers flung his way out of the air. He quickly shimmied out of his own clothes, carefully folding both sets and laying them beside Omaliko's Testament.

"So, what are we starting with?" he asked, turning to face Olisa.

But the Practitioner seemed not to have heard. He was stretching, muscles flexing, and was watching Somadina with an odd expression on his face.

Suddenly self-conscious, Somadina felt heat rising to his cheeks. "What is it?" he sniped, acutely aware of the glaring lack of definition to his arms and the gentle swell of his soft belly. He probably looked like a baby hippopotamus next to Olisa's chiselled form.

"Nothing, nothing." Olisa's lips twitched, amusement dancing in his eyes. "Just got a little distracted, that's all."

Somadina made a squeaking sound, like a rat getting stepped on, and looked anywhere but at Olisa. His body flushed with heat, a mix of embarrassment and something else he didn't want to examine too closely. Resist, Somadina. You're stronger than this.

"Shouldn't you be training me?" Somadina demanded, his voice coming out higher than he intended. That's it. Go on the offensive.

"Relax, Somadina. I was just teasing," Olisa replied, unrepentant. "But you're right. Time isn't on our side." He paused, gathering his thoughts. "What do you know about magic?"

"Not much," Somadina replied slowly, still a little shaken. "To use a technique, it has to be formed into a script, right?"

"Not exactly, but you're not entirely wrong. As a dibia, you've got anwansi flowing through you from cultivating. Normally the only time it is used up is when you cycle and use it to purify your channels. Otherwise, it'll just sit there in your core."

Somadina nodded. This much, at least, he was familiar with.

Olisa continued, his voice taking on a teacher's cadence. "The scripts you're familiar with are used for Enchantments, so things like Forging weapons, making wards, and so on. Basically, magic that's applied to an object, usually for the long term. Enchantment techniques are the only times you'll have to physically draw a script, hence the reason why they are unique from everything else. For the other ones, we use Seals."

To demonstrate, Olisa raised a hand. A turquoise symbol, similar to the one Somadina's mother had used, sprang to life, floating gently over the Practitioner's open palm. Indeed, as Olisa had said, Somadina didn't recognize it. The Seal resembled, if he squinted hard enough, a tiny bird, its beak open in song.

"There are four types of magic," Olisa explained. "Enchantments, which I just explained. Enforcements, Invocations, and finally Conjurations. An Enforcement Seal is kind of like the opposite of Enhancements since it affects the user directly. Not every affinity comes with useful or even any Enforcements at all, so it's not commonly used. Get it?"

Somadina nodded, trying to absorb all the information.

Olisa gave a nod back, then snapped his fingers. The Seal exploded in a burst of light, and suddenly the world was filled with melodious birdsong. The sweet notes hung in the air, seeming to come from everywhere and nowhere at once.

"That was an Invocation, a technique that affects the world around you," Olisa explained. He made the same Seal appear again, then let it fade. "Murmuration. One of the minor ones. Normally, Seals that simple aren't visible at all. I made it like that so you could understand what I was talking about. To actually cast an Invocation or Conjuration technique, the Seal must be pictured clearly in your mind. You following so far?"

"I think so," Somadina replied, his mind whirling with the new information.

"Good. Now for the next one."

Another Seal appeared, bigger and far more complex. Intricate patterns swirled within it, pulsing with barely contained energy. Somadina had the sense to clap his hands over his ears as Olisa flung the script at one of the mounds. The earth erupted in a deluge of screams, the mound disintegrating under the assault of turquoise sound magic.

When the echoes faded and the dust settled, Olisa spoke again. "Cacophony," he said, as Somadina's ears stopped ringing. "Absolutely useless for ambushes and stealth missions, but worth it if you're going for a shock and awe approach."

"Was that really necessary?" asked Somadina, hands still pressed tightly against his ears.

"Absolutely," came the gleeful reply. However, the smile dropped from Olisa's face when Somadina finally pulled his hands away and winced in pain.

Concern flooded Olisa's features. "Are you okay?" He seized Somadina's face gently, peering into his ears with worried eyes. He relaxed only when he saw no bleeding. "I'm sorry. Sometimes I don't remember how close Kainene and I are to Ordained. I forget my strength."

"It's okay. I'm fine," Somadina assured him, touched by the concern. He reached up, his fingers brushing against the palm on his face. "You didn't hurt me."

Still, Olisa hesitated, scanning him intently. After a few moments of prolonged eye contact, his lips quirked upwards and he pulled away, leaving Somadina feeling a little bereft, like the sun had vanished behind a cloud.

"Very well," Olisa began, rubbing his palms together, his enthusiasm returning. "I assume you brought along the Testament?"

"Yes." Somadina moved to where he had dropped it next to their clothes, firmly shoving his confused feelings into a dark recess in his mind. He had no time for that now.

"Excellent. I think we will start with a Conjuration technique. Their Seals are usually the easiest to master. Try and find one that'll let you cause some direct damage, and leave the more complex ones alone for now. Dream anwansi has a history of ending badly for dibias with an affinity to it. Like lose all sense of reality and go insane type of bad."

Somadina stopped reading and shot him a startled glare, his heart rate spiking.

Olisa held up his hands placatingly. "Relax. Those cases are always when dibias think they're smart and start experimenting. It won't happen to you."

Somadina relaxed.

"Probably."