Sora Brontarion
Dark, moody clouds enveloped our floating training facility, and the familiar smell of petrichor filled the atmosphere.
A storm was coming. I loathe them, but I couldn't deny the importance they held with our clan. We treated lightning like divine roshak paintings—a powerful tool for those connected to the Sango Mata Constellation. A lesson grandmother never let me forget.
Keeping to my lessons, I knelt in the base we built and began a divination. Reading faint streaks of lightning that painted the sky while channeling cosmic energy to my astral tattoo, I activated my first node's ability, lighting manipulation.
Like always, the hairs on my hands begin to rise as my hands tingle with energy. Small and controlled currents of electricity skipped from one palm to the other.
May the High Pantheon grant me thy blessing.
When I glanced at the faint streaks of light dancing across the sky, they appeared different, as if I was gazing upon a sentient being that shared a deep connection with my spirit. I could feel the life of the lighting and the emotions it carried: loneliness, depression, and joy.
Pushing my thoughts into the storm, I asked whether there were any allies my brother and I could trust during this test.
The faint streaks of lightning stopped.
The wait feels like an eternity.
Then the lighting finally spoke back to me, an array of streaks dancing throughout the moody clouds. The small current of electricity jumping from my palms changed shape, and I received my answer.
"What did it say, sis?" Jace asked from above in his perch of clouds.
"It said we would find valuable allies."
"Do we really need them? We should be fine with just the two of us."
"Two of us? I'm the only one doing any work. And yes, we do need help. Making allies is crucial for our success. It doesn't help that the few members of our clan did not want to join us. Along with our cousins from the Kazehoshi clan."
"You're right, it doesn't help. But oh well, that's their loss. Anyone would be lucky to have you as an ally," my brother said, sitting up in his cloud.
"You're just saying that because you know I'll pick up your slack."
"Maybe…" he said as his cloud grew brighter. "But what do you have planned while I watch the base?"
Sighing, I responded. "I'm looking for food, and hopefully I can find someone who can help us."
"Cool, be safe out there, Sor," Jace said, lying back down in his cloud.
Walking out of our base, I responded, "Of course." Our base was near a riverbank, providing us with fresh water and an excellent way to lure others. But on our first day, we had no luck with the latter.
As I ventured out into the forest, I still wasn't used to the camera following me as close as it did, but I endured. I made the habit of marking the trees along the way for two reasons: it helped me find my way back to our base, and if I were out too long, Jace would know which path to take first.
I gathered a few familiar fruits, then a rancid stench started to fill the air. A smell I knew all too well from hunting with grandpa. The carcass of an animal that no longer roamed the earth, proceeding, I let the scent lure me to its origin.
In front of me were four mundane goats.
"Did an astral behemoth do this?", remembering I sensed a few out in the forest. Quickly, I remembered the most important fact about astral behemoths. They only go after things with cosmic energy; mundane animals would never be a target.
My intuition told me this was something I should keep my eye out for in the future. Switching gears, I pulled out a thin wire from my dimensional storage. Funneling cosmic energy, sparks of electricity danced from my fingertip to the wire, illuminating the tool.
I began to saw through the goats' deep tissue. The familiar smell of burned flesh primed my nostrils.
Memories surfaced of when our father wasn't so obsessed with war, times he would take my brother and me across the storm plains of our region. He'd teach us little tricks of the Sango Mata constellation and show us ruins tied to the ancient stories of our clan.
Sadly, those times are gone.
As I continued my prep of the animal, a crackling noise came from the bushes. It didn't sound like rodents. It was something larger, something that commanded presence. Slowly, I shifted my gaze from the goat beneath me to the area from which the sound came.
Quickly, I diverted the flow of electricity from the wire back into my body. Not wasting another moment, I channeled the currents to my feet and created a wide net trap.
"Whatever you are, please do not come closer if you know what's good for you."
There was a lull that hung in the air. Suddenly, the ground beneath me started to rumble.
"I'm warning you." I continued.
Not a single word echoed back, but the ground started to shift and bulge.
"I would prefer not to harm a princess," a soft but stern voice said.
A slender figure walked out of the bushes. "Mira, is your name right?"
"It is, glad to know I made an impression."
"Of course you did, you were one of the students I was hoping to run into."
She tilted her head. "Why is that, trying to knock off the competition early?"
"Not at all, I wanted to invite you to join my team. Your confidence and ability are infectious. A team with you, me, and my brother would be hard to beat."
"I'm flattered and all, but I would much rather succeed on my own, and not on the coattails of nobles."
"I see, well, take one of these as goodwill between us." I knelt, grabbed some meat, and tossed it to her.
"Maybe in the future then."
Thanks to my rare edict, I could sense there was no use in trying to convince her. She had a deep conviction and resolve embedded within her words. No matter how much I tried, she was not going to budge. Like the others, she wasn't going to join forces with someone they didn't understand.
Suddenly, I felt a rush of aggressive emotions flooding my mind. She was attacking.
Completely disregarding my good intentions, she commanded the earth to wrap around my legs, trapping me in place.
"Hand over your totems now, princess. If you don't ill trap your entire body under the earth and only your head will remain above ground."
She wasn't bluffing.
I quickly commanded lightning to shoot from my fingertips to immobilize her. Earth enveloped her to shield her from my attack. Next thing I knew, my hands were now trapped, encased in the earth she commanded.
"That was a warning. Next time you try anything, I'll keep my promise." She walked up to me and released one of my hands from the earth, demanding my totems. I had no choice but to give in. I was at a complete disadvantage.
I quickly opened my dimensional storage and handed her my totems.
"Thank you, that wasn't too difficult, was it, princess?" annoyed at the camera hovering to the right of me. I didn't respond to her words. My failed attempt at gaining an ally was the only thing on my mind.
I was beginning to understand what Grandma went through before passing. In the world, people only respect influence. A power that transcends physical strength, something grandma didn't have in her later years—a power I needed.
Before Mira was out of earshot, I asked her a question.
"How long do you think you can last alone?"
"longer than you."