Edan felt like shit by the time he got home. Not wanting to head through the store, he used the side entrance. Pushing open the gate with a groan Edan shuffled into the backyard. His ankle had healed up, thanks to his constitution, but a bone-deep waryness had set in.

“The mighty warrior returns!” Sanik called out, stopping mid-lunge, his rapier held perfectly parallel with the ground.

Edan flashed a tired thumbs up and made his way over to the shade under the appleberry tree he had planted with Reema all those years ago when he had first gotten here. Sanik had built a picnic table under it, near the trunk, and it was there that Edan settled.

“How’d you do?” Sanik asked, still in the same position, his body perfectly balanced and almost unnaturally still. The plain white shirt he wore was damp with sweat and stained with dust. His blonde hair, tied up in a bun, had a few strands loose and they stuck to his skin.

“Made it to the top nine.”

Edans grin matched his adopted father's. A bit of the grin was due to the pride he saw in Saniks eyes. There had been a time, shortly after his biological father had dropped him off, that Edan had worried Sanik and Reema would grow tired of him. If his own parents didn’t want him, why would they?

He had never been so happy to be so wrong.

“I knew you would, son.” Sanik beamed. Then he moved. There was a flicker and he was in a different position. Edan hadn’t even seen him move. Now the sword was held out to the side, his father standing ramrod straight.

“Master Sims warned me about the sects. They won't be happy.”

Sanik blurred, dust kicking up from the ground. The wind shrieked as his blade cut the air. Now he stood with the sword behind him, as if he could hide the long thin blade behind his back.

“Does that bother you?” he asked.

Edan considered the question, leaning against the tabletop and picking at a splinter near the edge.

“No. I mean…no more than usual? They give me shit anyway. Not just me. Well, mostly me,” Edan admitted with a low laugh. “But that's because I don’t fall all over myself trying to suck up to them.”

Sanik chuckled and nodded before saying “Fair enough.”

Edan closed his eyes for a second, enjoying the cool evening and the comfort of being home. There was a crack of displaced air and he opened his eyes. His father now stood across the yard, his sword extended in a stab. Another crack and Sanik disappeared again. He appeared next to the table, his sword slashing through an imaginary foe, before the swing had completed he vanished again with another crack. He appeared in the air, his body twisting in a somersault as the slash completed its journey.

Edan clapped as Sanik landed lightly on his feet, his rapier sliding back into a sheath before it vanished all together, sucked back into the storage ring Sanik wore on his finger.

“Nice! That was three!” Edan exclaimed.

Sanik put his hand on his waist and put on a bored look. “Yes. I improved the skill the other day. What can I say? A genius such as I has little to brag about.”

“You completely lucked out didn’t you?”

“Yup! Your mum was talking to me while I was practicing. Something about a new sewing style? I dunno. I wasn’t listening. I was two flicker steps in when she asked me a question.” Sanik smiled fondly at the memory. “I was too scared to admit I wasn’t listening so I wished I was anywhere else. I ended up stepping to the back door.”

“You should piss off mum more.”

“No,” Sanik shook his head sadly. “The world isn’t ready for the kind of power it would grow.”

Edan laughed as he stood up. Stretching he felt a pop in his back and sighed with relief.

“I’m going to head up and grab a shower, then cultivate for a bit in my room.”

“Alright. I’ll probably be a bit longer. Might help Rem lock up. I’ll let her know you’re back. I’m sure she’ll want to hear about your day over dinner.”

Edan waved acknowledgment as he entered the workshop. It was quiet, Reema must be in the front. Edan stumbled up the stairs and into the living room, taking his time.

A cold shower helped wake him up and soothed his aching body. He considered dressing but after throwing on a pair of shorts he sat down cross-legged on the floor of his room. He tossed his towel on the bed before realizing it would leave a damp spot. With a groan, he got up and moved it to the bed frame before settling back down.

Taking a deep breath Edan tried to calm his heart. He was too exhausted to try to raise his Body level, and if he meditated he would likely fall asleep, so trying to raise his Soul level was also out of the question. That just left Mind.

Edan took slow, deep breaths, allowing his heartbeat to settle. He emptied his mind, letting the memories of the day fall away. There was emotion under it. Excitement, anger, pride, fear. Edan breathed deep and let them go too. What he wanted was beyond that.

He felt himself fall through the darkness. Conscious yet not. Fast, but slow.

He fell down, but then down was sideways and he moved into his SoulScape.

It was infantile and barren. Golden light came from a pool of thick liquid undulating slowly, like waves, in the center of his most private space. The waves broke against an invisible shore before receding. Floating above the center of the pool was a bead. It looked like frosted glass. Edans consciousness drew closer to the bead and he tried to look within.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

Was it his imagination, or could he make out a light within that core? The spark that was his system, waiting to be brought to life.

Edan allowed his consciousness to move back. It wasn’t time. He still needed to refine his core. Only when it was clear enough to see through could he even begin to think about birthing it.

Settling back, Edan reached out and took control of the pool of raw golden Vitalis. It resisted his control, the waves turning rough.

Edan pushed against it. Asserting his will on the energy he had absorbed and stored. The waves calmed. The pool settled. Edan spun it. Slowly at first, but gradually picking up speed, the liquid energy began to spin. Edan created a whirlpool with the center under his core.

The strain as he lifted the pool was immense. Edan felt the pressure it put on his real body. He could feel an ache in his temple and knew once he left his Soulscape he’d be in for the mother of all headaches.

Slowly the pool rose, the outer edge rising past the floating bead. Edan slowed down, ensuring the swirling energy maintained a steady movement. Happy, he lifted it further, placing his core in the center of the vortex.

The liquid Vitalis slid over the surface of his core, the gold energy stripping away minuscule impurities from its surface. The added resistance though made it harder for Edan to keep the pool rotating and with a gasp he let it fall apart.

The pool fell, crashing against inky darkness and spreading out like a stain before slowly drawing back together. Edan watched it all gather back beneath his core and the gentle undulations started up once more.

His core remained as green and opaque as ever.

Maybe he was just too tired.

With a sigh, he fell back. Then he fell up.

Edan opened his eyes and flopped backward onto the floor. Looking up at the ceiling he tried not to let his disappointment win.

The cultivation manuals the academy had given them were considered the best. Well, the best for public consumption at least. The sects all had their own methods and Edan was willing to bet their kids attending the Academy were using those methods. Even if they weren’t meant to.

That was part of the reason Edan wanted a Sect Sponsorship.

Nor could he use the same method as Sanik or Reema. Sanik’s methods were completely useless to Edan. It was only suitable to use after you had birthed your system and become graded, and it relied on the use of a fencing weapon.

Edan sucked with swords. He had none of the finesse needed and treated them like bats. Which was annoying because he didn’t have the brute strength required to use a bat so…

Reema’s cultivation was focused on her profession and Edan didn’t see himself becoming a [Hush Weaver]. He had neither the stealth for the assassin side of the profession nor the interest in elaborate plots for the weaver side of things.

Edan shook his head and rolled to his feet.

If he wasn’t going to cultivate, and he was too tired to go out and train, he could at least cook dinner.

Sanik and Reema came up the stairs as he was flipping the tomatoes and peppers in the pan. The smell of cooked meat hung in the air, even after Edan had opened the window over the sink. Below, he could see people walking on the street.

Reema came over and gave Edan a kiss on the forehead and a crushing hug.

“Sanik told me you got ninth place. I’m so proud of you!”

Edan returned her hug.

Reema pulled back, giving him a proud smile so wide her cheeks almost swallowed her eyes, before moving over to the cool box. She leaned over, pulling something from inside, and said over her shoulder. “I already knew you would, that's why I baked this!”

She held up a frosted cake. She wasn’t the best at decorating and the icing looked a little uneven in places. The chocolate she had melted over the top looked like they were meant to have been letters, but it obviously had spread out too much before cooling and now just made the surface look patchy.

As far as Edan was concerned, it was perfect.

“Congratulations!” She cheered, holding up the cake. Behind her Sanik reached out reflexively, afraid she’d drop it, even as he too joined in on her cheer.

Edan mumbled his thanks, suddenly shy.

“Oh darling, you need to remember to get a scribe down to fix the markings along the coolbox, they’re wearing out,” she added quickly to Sanik. “Now I better put this away before it starts melting again.”

She slid the cake back into the chilled interior of their cool box and closed the door. Turning to Sanik she flicked her finger towards the shower.

“Go clean up, you smell like sweat and there's dust all over your hair.”

“As you wish.” Sanik gave a flourishing bow before giving her a wink. “Care to join me?”

“Ewww! Dad!” Edan made a face and turned back to the pan, flipping the tomatoes and peppers once more. They looked ready so he moved it off the heat.

Sanik’s laughter followed him into the shower and Reema came to stand beside Edan. She looked over what was for dinner and nodded happily.

“Don’t mind him, he’s just happy for you and being an idiot.”

“I know,” Edan admitted. “Still gross though.”

Reema laughed.

“Then I guess we shouldn’t tell you we’re trying?”

“Trying?” Edan asked distractedly, shifting the vegetables out of the pan.

Reema didn’t answer him straight away and it was only when he looked at her that she patted her belly. The look she returned was pointed.

Edan looked at her blankly.

“You hungry?” He asked, confused.

“No!” Reema slapped her forehead, her brown eyes shining with amusement. “I meant we’re trying for a baby. I was trying to be smooth.”

“Oh. Oh!” It finally clicked and Edan blinked at the sudden news.

Part of him was thrilled. But a darker part woke up. The part of him that he had buried deep and thought killed by Sanik and Reema’s love. The fear. The insecurities.

If they had a child, did they need him? He was almost eighteen. Would he need to leave?

At that moment Edan hated himself. Why couldn’t he just be happy for them?

Reema, oblivious to Edan’s turmoil continued on.

“Ever since you were a kid, I’ve wanted another child. Sanik was happy to just focus on raising you right. He worried a lot about how we would handle two children and also continue working at the same time. I mean, we both worried about it, but Sanik worried more. We couldn’t ask Harvey to babysit two children.” Reema laughed and patted Edan, who stood frozen. “But it’s actually thanks to you that we’ve decided to try now.”

Edan blinked, the darkness threatening to drown him retreating as he registered her words. Another child. Sanik was happy with you.

“Sanik figured we did a pretty good job raising you, that maybe we could raise another.” Reema smiled warmly at Edan, ruffling his hair like she used to when he was a kid. “And you’ll be an awesome older brother so what do we have to worry about?”

Older brother.

The darkness vanished and suddenly the kitchen had never looked so bright and airy. Edan pulled Reema into a hug. She laughed and patted his back.

“So I take it you’re not opposed?”

Edan let her go and turned back to the counter quickly so she wouldn't see the moisture in his eyes. He cleared his throat and started plating the food.

“Nah, I won’t mind,” Edan said smiling.