Jun followed Khayvla to behind the house in the early dawn, barely any light out.
The bright stars were hardly visible through the thick morning fog that hung high up in the sky. He lagged back a little to walk next to Arkshan.
The half-dragon didn't seem to be as irritated as he was yesterday. Just a blank expression plastered onto his face.
Should I ask him about last night?
Though Arkshan wasn't, or ever was, in the mood to deal with anyone, he seemed to not be in such a bitchy mood.
"Hey, um..."
No matter how long Jun has traveled with Arkshan thus far, he still couldn't stop himself from feeling intimidated by Arkshan's glowing eyes staring down at him.
Arkshan narrowed his eyes before speaking in an irritated voice, "Spit it out."
Jun broke eye contact as he shifted his focus to the ground.
"Uh, about last night..." a grunt could be heard from the half-dragon, "why..."
Jun didn't know how to really word the situation.
Having Arkshan curled around him was something that he thought would only ever happen in his imagination. Maybe it was all just a hallucination and he shouldn't bring attention to it.
"Just fucking say it!" Jun jumped at the sudden yelling at him.
"Please stop arguing." Khayvla said calmly as he stopped walking.
"Keep to yourself old man!" Arkshan sounded like he was going to wake the whole village at this point. The echoing of his voice could be heard in the distance. Ringing in the mountain ranges far away.
"Why were you curled around me?!" Jun said as quickly as possible. He slowly looked up to see Arkshan staring down at him blankly.
Not angry nor irritated. Like he was confused.
Before Jun could get Arkshan's attention, he was pushed towards Khayvla. He looked back to see Arkshan lean up against the house with crossed arms. Looking like he was deep in thought.
"Now, display your skills." Jun heard Khayvla say, causing him to turn back around. He didn't dare to ask why as he took off his bow from his back. As Khayvla probably wasn't going to answer.
Like his teacher he had all those years ago.
But it still didn't make any sense how he even knew Jun had any abilities at all. Perhaps it was a wild and lucky guess?
Jun put his fingers into position as he looked for a target. His eyes locked onto a small bush nearby. He pointed to it.
"Strike."
Thunder filled the air as the bush turned into charred branches. The blue lightning was gone as quick as it came.
He looked over to Khayvla who rested his hand behind his back and the other on the cane.
"You control lightning?" He sounded both calm and surprised at the same time. Jun slowly nodded his head. "I have never met someone who could. Let us see how you fare in a duel then."
Jun felt his heart start to race as he tried to prepare himself. The only thing Khayvla did was put both of his hands on his cane.
All of a sudden a piece of the ground came flying at him as Khayvla swiftly swung his cane.
Jun barely managed to roll out of the way of the dirt. His dodge was short lived as another swing of his cane caused another ball to be hurled in his direction.
Jun dodged it as well. He pointed quickly at the old man. "Strike."
He expected Khayvla to be struck. And he was.
But only the dirt that had surrounded the him. The lightning hit the dirt and caused it to spray in multiple directions.
Maybe I have to directly attack him.
Jun disputed to himself as he dodged more attacks thrown at him. Khayvla's attacks may not be powerful, but his ability to continue to manipulate dirt that had already been hit made up for it. Making it nearly impossible to completely destroy his defenses or counter his attacks.
"Come." Jun spread the plasma onto the tips of his bow and charged at Khayvla.
A large boulder of dirt came up in front of Jun. He swung and managed to slice it in half.
Instead of dropping, the two dirt halves started to come towards each other.
Jun was able to barely roll away as the two halves came crashing into each other. Any later and he would've been crushed.
He continued to slice and dodge the boulders that came his way. Jun eventually managed to get within range of Khayvla and cut through his defenses.
"Release." The plasma released from his bow and arced towards Khayvla.
"Not terrible," Khayvla stated calmly while the plasma destroyed pieces of dirt that surrounded Jun's bow.
The dirt released and Jun bent over panting. It wasn't that long of a fight, but the dodging and rolling was a bit much for Jun.
Slow clapping could be heard in the distance. Jun looked over in its direction and say Arkshan lazily clapping. His face completely devoid of any and all emotion.
"And the crowd goes wild, woo." The half-dragon mocked in a monotone voice.
Very mature of you... Jun thought bitterly as he turned back to Khayvla, panting.
"So...what..." Jun paused to catch his breath. "Do I do now?" A chuckle escaped from the old man's lips as he patted Jun on the shoulder.
"You need to learn control."
Jun looked up at him in disbelief.
I don't know how to control my yutama?! He felt his teeth clench while he slowly stood up.
"I can control it." Jun tried his damnedest to keep his voice as calm and nice as possible, though it shook slightly with anger. "Is it not obvious?"
An even louder laugh came from Khayvla as he slapped the top of his cane. "No I can't."
Jun was taken aback by the old man's bluntness. Before he could speak again, Khayvla began to take of the bandages around his eyes.
A gasp escaped Jun as he saw a huge scar of a cut that ran across both of his eyes. His eyes were grey and had blood that spread from the cuts across them.
"How—"
"I had lost my sight when fighting a lesser dragon back in Saha. As it was the duty of the Qin Shés to try and keep the purity of Saha protected from them."
Jun couldn't take his eyes off the sight of what was Khayvla's scar. He had never met a yutama user, or any Spirit Manipulation user, that was blind. And with so much skill to boot.
"Then how are you so skilled?" Jun didn't mean to blurt out the question.
"I am not very skilled," Khayvla waved his hand, "but it is where control comes in."
Jun watched as Khayvla slammed his cane on the ground. A ball of dirt came up out of the ground and floated between them.
"Spirit Manipulation is based on the idea that one's Spirit can manipulate the elements around them. Flowing alongside the elements, not directly controlling them." Khayvla flicked his wrist and the ball suddenly spilt into multiple parts as it continued to float. "But one can with enough control. That is how I got my sight back."
Jun continued to watch in awe as he manipulated the dirt around them. It combined, recombined, and floated all around the air.
"I, like many others, were taught how to guide the elements into the direction I wanted. But I had to adapt when I lost my sight. Throughout my journey of learning and overcoming this difficult obstacle, I remembered that,
"'If you dwell on what had, you will go nowhere. But if you dwell on what could, you will go anywhere.'
"And this proverb from my apprentice Shé days still holds true over the centuries I have lived."
Awe and admiration came over Jun as he listened to Khayvla's wisdom.
"How can you be centuries old?" Jun knew Khayvla was a centurion as he told him last night, though the man didn't look nor act like it. Which absolutely baffled Jun.
Khayvla nodded his head.
"Using Spirit Manipulation correctly and righteously allows one to obtain a longer and more fulfilling life. Though enough about my life and experiences. It is time you learn control.
"First, despite what many say, you do not need to put all of your focus into controlling your element. As once you learn to live in harmony with it, become one with your element, it will act as an extension of your own body in your range of control. Because, do you need to completely focus on your limbs when it walks or moves?"
Jun shook his head.
"Exactly. Now focus on the air around you. Try and flow with the Spirit within and around you."
Jun put his bow on the ground and closed his eyes. He tried to become in a mediative state as he focused on the energy flowing within him.
It felt like small sparks of electricity bouncing from the ends of his fingers and throughout his body. A wave of calm flowed over him as his surroundings started to fade.
"Now think of your element and its energy near you."
Khayvla's voice sounded far away. It felt like Jun was moving through a thick liquid as he shifted his focus, though he stood still.
"Now open your eyes."
As Jun slowly opened his eyes, he felt a sudden warmth near his hands. It slowly got hotter and hotter as he opened.
Plasma covered his hands and was slowly moving.
Jun yelped as he realized what was on him. It suddenly got unbearably hot and he shook his hands quickly. The plasma flew off and arced onto anything nearby. Jun yelled in pain as he felt a brief electrocution from a stray arc.
Some muffled laughs could be heard in the distance.
He had no idea what happened. Nothing was summoned from in the sky. Like it all of a sudden manifested from thin air.
"I guess you've never done this before." Khayvla stated as he stroked his beard. "It's going to be a bit before you're able to master control."
"What do you mean by that?!" Jun jumped at Arkshan's voice, he expected him to have gone off somewhere.
Surprisingly he had stayed the entire time.
The sun had just breached the horizon and the sunrise could be seen through the mountains. Colors of gold and orange lit up the sky.
"That it will take some time before he learns control." Steam was now flowing out of Arkshan's nose heavily.
"Specifically!"
"That I do not know. It could take a week, a few months, even years."
Jun watched as Arkshan hissed before storming off down into the village.
"Arkshan!" Jun shouted, running towards the half-dragon. He grabbed his arm to get him to stop walking.
"I'm not stalling any longer for you," Arkshan stated curtly as he forced Jun's hand off of him.
"I'll..." Jun didn't want Arkshan to leave him, especially with him being this far West. "I'll learn it in a few days. I promise."
Arkshan sighed before turning around to face Jun.
"Three days."
Jun held his breath as he heard his offer. It was a lot less days than he was expecting. But before Jun could protest Arkshan spoke again.
"If you don't, I won't bother with you anymore."
Jun slowly nodded his head as he made his way back up to the house. Khayvla was seen standing near the open door. A faint smile on his face.
"Let's have breakfast. As food always tastes better in good company," Khayvla said as he went inside.
A small smile came to Jun's as he heard those words.
———
Khayvla ladled the soup and noodles into three bowls on the table.
He had asked for Jun and Arkshan to get a few ingredients from the village. Much to Arkshan's displeasure.
The soup seemed to just be potatoes, various parts of a chicken, egg, and herbs along with local noodles.
It was hard to try and buy the ingredients as it seemed that no one in Górsinburg spoke Common. But with enough of Arkshan's pointing and impatience they were able to procure the ingredients. Voluntarily or not, Jun couldn't really discern between the two.
"Unfortunately, you don't ever see rice in the West." Khayvla sat down and passed a fork and a spoon to each of them. "So I had to make due."
"It's fine, Shéke. We're thankful that you offered breakfast," Jun assured as he looked down at his food. He had never eaten with a fork. Though it seemed pretty straightforward, he didn't understand how one would eat noodles with it.
Jun looked over at Arkshan and seen that he had no problem eating his breakfast in silence.
Using his fork and spoon as gracefully as Khayvla did. Though Khayvla held the untenils in either hand at the same time, while Arkshan was just using his fork.
Jun gingerly picked up his fork and poked it into a potato. The vegetable was flaky, causing him to quickly shove it in his mouth. He felt embarrassed by his ineptitude with these utensils and opted to turn around to hide his shame.
Suddenly Jun felt something poke him in his side. He turned around and saw Arkshan staring at him.
The half-dragon twirled his fork in his soup and took a bite of the noodles that were wrapped around it. Jun tried to copy what Arkshan did and had some success.
The soup was pretty light, like most soups from the East were, but had good flavor from the herbs and meat. Though the potatoes and noodles made it quite filling.
"Oh, Shéke, aren't Shès not supposed to eat meat?" The realization came to Jun when he realized Khayvla eating the same soup as them.
"Only Shés from Mang and Huaza are vegetarians," Khayvla laughed as he took a bite of his chicken. Jun did a small "oh" and went back to eat in his newfound embarrassment.
He didn't realize that he didn't know so many things about the East. Probably because he only ever stayed in Shiyong his entire life. And the coastal parts of the Mang Kingdom in the past year.
They all continued to eat their breakfast in silence. Jun noticed that Arkshan had gotten a third serving of the soup when he was barely halfway through his own bowl.
He still didn't understand how fast Arkshan could eat, along with how much. It was somewhat scary to Jun.
"Have there been any bounties as of late?" Arkshan asked, breaking the silence, as he emptied the pot with his fourth serving. It was the first time Jun heard Arkshan trying to make casual conversation with someone. Khayvla put his utensils down, going into a state of thought.
"In truth, there has been one recently. Up North in St. Tóflin, near the Dwarf kingdom of Mon Nirdor."
Jun watched as Arkshan became more attentive to the old man at his answer.
"How so?" The half-dragon's voice laced with interest. It took a bit before Khayvla answered, which worried Jun.
He already was forced to enter a mine, of whatever depth, to exterminate some high class demon. And now this, it wasn't going to calm Jun with whichever answer he heard.
"Well from what I've heard, it is recent. About a week before you two arrived. No one had ever seen something like it. But it did quickly earn itself a title. Vronymaja. Crow Dragon."
Jun was surprised how well Khayvla pronounced the foreign word, though it made sense if he's lived here for so long.
He looked up at Arkshan in worry. Jun had no idea what a Crow Dragon would mean. Whether it meant a hybrid or something else. It didn't sound good either way. But all Arkshan did was inquire further.
"How much?"
"I do not know. But I have heard that it was pretty high." A smirk graced Arkshan's lips at the price.
"Train him quick." Khayvla laughed at Arkshan's comment.
"I'm sure he will."
The newfound pressure of having to learn something, that apparently took a long time to master, felt like his childhood all over again. Lots of expectations and pressures to perform.
Jun decided to stay out of the conversation as he tried to finish his breakfast.
———
"Now focus on the energies inside and around you."
Jun tried once again, of the many times today, to try and control his element. He slowly opened his eyes to try and see the plasma that would be in his hands. They were completely empty as he looked down at them.
Jun sighed while he looked down at the ground in disappointment. It was only the noon time, but he had gotten absolutely no where in controlling his powers. No progress. Nothing.
It seemed like he wouldn't be able to learn it in a timely manner as he had promised. He even felt like he was failing and disappointing Khayvla. As the man had said that he was sure that Jun will learn it quickly.
I'm just a failure...as always...
"I'm sorry..." Jun managed to choke out as he didn't bother to look at Khayvla.
"What is there to be sorry about?" he asked in disbelief as he walked closer to Jun.
"That I'm not making any progress..." Khayvla laughed, causing Jun to look up at him.
"It's only noon! Trying is progress."
"But—"
"Come on, let's continue. I'll do it with you."
Jun didn't know if he should be happy or embarrassed that Khayvla was going to do the movements with him. It felt like he was just going to be reminded how he didn't have the control that Khayvla possessed.
He closed his eyes and followed Khaylva's voice once again.
The soft electrical feeling flowed from the tips of his fingers and throughout his veins. Like the many attempts before.
"Now open."
He opened his eyes and felt a sudden warmth near his hands. A small glow of plasma was around his hands. But before he could rejoice it disappeared. He huffed in defeat as he looked at Khayvla.
"See, progress."
Though Jun didn't feel like he made any progress.