Chapter 12: Let The Training Begin
Sam had trouble falling back asleep for a while. He wasn’t sure if Maeve was holding his mother hostage or something, but he was determined to become strong enough to free her if she was, even if it meant doing what Maeve wanted... for now.
Eventually, he was able to drift back to sleep. The following morning, Lazula and Calista woke up early and went with him to begin his training under Koga.
"Magic and martial arts go hand-in-hand," Koga explained as they went through a series of pre-training stretches. They were all in his backyard. "A disciplined body and mind is vital for properly channeling Mana. I don’t know how much your friends have told you or what you already know, so I will just start from the beginning.
"When someone has their Awakening, a new cluster of nerves grows from the solar plexus and spawns a new living organ - the Power Core." He pointed to his upper abdomen to indicate the location. "The Core converts your own bioelectrical energy into Mana, and has eight valves in it that regulate its flow. These are called Mana Gates.
"The First Mana Gate provides very basic magic. Each subsequent Gate opened allows for greater amounts of Mana to be generated and channeled through the body and projected outward. The amount of Gates opened corresponds to your rank."
Koga went over them all with Sam, and he learned each gate and associated rank:
First Mana Gate: E-Rank
Second Mana Gate: D-Rank
Third Mana Gate: C-Rank
Fourth Mana Gate: B-Rank
Fifth Mana Gate: A-Rank
Sixth Mana Gate: S-Rank
Seventh Mana Gate: SS-Rank
Eighth Mana Gate: SSS-Rank
Koga continued. "Once you’ve grown accustomed to feeling the flow of Mana, you can sense it as an Aura in others. But most people deliberately suppress their true power outside of battle to conserve energy, so trying to determine someone’s exact Mana Power Level can be difficult at times.
"As for Classes, those are interfaces embedded into the bloodlines of everyone’s ancestors and passed on for thousands of years. They are managed by your Power Core, which will display numbers in your mind once you learn how to access it fully."
"So, what’s the next step?" Sam asked.
"First you need to actually feel your own Mana. From what I can sense, your First Gate is mostly closed, but there’s a tiny gap, so it shouldn’t be too hard to open it the rest of the way." He explained.
"Wait, so you can actually tell how many Gates someone has open?" Sam found that tidbit pretty cool.
"Yes. You can feel layers to someone’s Aura based on how many Gates they’ve opened. Again, it will make more sense once you can feel it."
"Okay, cool. So what do I need to do?" Sam asked.
They sat cross-legged on the ground, then Koga continued. "Now close your eyes. Let everything outside our immediate space fade away. Breathe in. Breathe out. Focus on my voice and your own body heat. Imagine that body heat being a dwindling campfire with only a few burning embers left. Now focus on those embers. Imagine yourself gently blowing on them. They are getting brighter, burning hotter."
As Sam listened to his words, he could picture the campfire clear as day in his mind. The embers were growing brighter. He could actually feel a warmth growing inside his abdomen.
That must be my Power Core, he thought to himself. The embers started to build into an actual fire. It was orange at first like normal flames, but then it started shifting to a brilliant green color.
Sam felt his First Gate opening - it was similar to that flush sensation people sometimes get in their heart valves when they get their heartrate up.
"I’m starting to feel it..." he whispered.
"I can sense it in your Aura. That’s good! Now, whatever you do, don’t let the fire get too big and - WHOA!"
...He let the fire get too big. Oops.
Koga quickly erected a magical shield in front of himself as Sam’s Aura exploded to life around him in a fiery storm of emerald flames. The teen jumped up and began screaming and running around the yard waving his hands like a madman.
"Oh shit! I’m on fire! I’M ON FUCKING FIRE!!! AHHHHHH!!!"
Good thing he didn’t overreact.
"Oh shit! Your own Aura shouldn’t be hurting you!" Koga cried out. Then he looked at the teen for a moment and raised an eyebrow. "Wait a minute... Are you actually in any pain?"
Sam stopped running and screaming, and realized the flames weren’t actually harming him. "I... I guess not..."
Koga rolled his eyes and threw his arms up. "Then why the fuck were you freaking out like that?! Look, now the neighbors are all coming to see what all the commotion is about!"
"I... panicked..." Sam felt humiliated as dozens of people from nearby houses came to see what that screaming was. Realizing he was in control the entire time, he willed the Aura off. "Sorry, everyone..."
After taking a short break, they were back at it.
"A Dragon Warlock works best when they learn Arcane Martial Arts, specifically five states based on the elements," Koga explained. "Follow along with me, and channel Mana into your limbs - carefully. Maintain control of yourself this time."
He moved into a low, heavy stance, feet spread out and placed firmly on the ground. "This is Earth State. Strong and immovable like a boulder."
He then began moving and swaying like a skilled dancer. "This is Water State. Flowing and adaptive like liquid."
Switching to a rapid display of punches, kicks, and elbow jabs to the air, he continued. "This is Fire State. Aggressive and ferocious like a raging inferno."
Koga shifted effortlessly into a series of acrobatic flips and jumps. "This is Air State. Light and nimble like the wind. And finally," he dropped into a meditative position. "This is Void State. Still and clear of mind. To truly succeed, you must master all five states and learn to shift between them at will."
Sam mimicked Koga’s movements. It was a strange sensation - he was directing the flow of Mana almost like some form of telekinesis. He could see it in his mind. He could feel it in his body. The Mana was an extension of himself...