I knew exactly how to leave the Sect, physically. It was a rather simple route, and it was not at all the direction we were going. I thought to speak up but Safi seemed absolutely fine with our current trajectory so I kept my curiosities to myself.
After our introductions Itzcoatl had remained silent, he seemed quite straightforward. Not shy, just direct. I imagined it would have got him into trouble considering how much cultivators enjoy being offended.
We entered a room as yet unexplored by me or Safi. I knew Safi had never been here because she was gazing around unabashedly, eyes sparkling with childlike wonder. I looked around the quite normal-looking room as well. It was definitely a workshop of some sort, clothing I guessed considering the looms and stitching stations. It was nothing that would garner a reaction like Safi’s, or so I thought. I saw, hanging up on the wall, something I never expected. A mask. Not a decorative one, a practical one. With a tight, intricate mesh, a sealed lining and a pair of goggles. I must have been staring because Safi tapped me on the shoulder.
“What? Impressed?” she smirked.
“I am,” I freely admitted. It was enough for me to consider the fact that this was not the backwater, no-name world I had thought it was. But, the fact remained that I did not recognise it. I didn’t know the creatures, the clans, the plants, the landmarks, none of it.
I knew every significant world. I knew every world advanced enough to make masks, of that I was certain. Safi and Itzcoatl were talking with someone, presumably getting their own set of equipment. I was busy pondering. Was this a newly advanced world? Was I floating around as a soul for longer than I had anticipated? Or is this some sort of pet-project for a Celestial Immortal.
I was snapped out of my self-imposed stupor by another tap on the shoulder, a little harder this time. “What’s the matter with you?” she asked a little worriedly.
“Nothing, I was just having some thoughts.”
“That much is obvious,” she said. “Is it something you want to talk about?”
“It’s not important right this second. We can talk about it later,” I assured her. She nodded, happy that I was not planning on keeping it to myself. She dropped some gear into my arms. A mask similar to the ones on the wall, a pair of gloves and a coat.
“This is the Errander kit. The standard clothing for missions, of course as we gain ranks we can commission a kit that suits our style a little better,” she said.
“I was not expecting where we were going to be this dangerous.”
“Pleasant surprise?” she asked with a coy smile.
“Certainly an exciting one.” I held the mask over my face. “Although, how am I supposed to show off my shocking good looks with this in the way?”
“Take it off if you want, then you can be a handsome dead body.” We laughed, earning a petulant look from Itzcoatl.
“Are you two finished flirting?”
“Are we?” Asked Safi.
“I don’t have a bow yet…” I realised.
“Ah, then you’ll have to put up with it for a little longer,” she giggled at Itzcoatl as he trudged dishearteningly out of the room.
I remembered Elder Laaka had called them the dwellers - The people that I would get my bow from. I was pleased we had Itzcoatl with us, he took us to them in a matter of minutes. As the name implied, we had to go down. Quite a long way, at that.
The dwellers turned out to be a serious bunch. They each had two swords hanging from their waists and a shield on their backs. They wore armour, not robes. Intricate helmets adorned their head, topped by a few feathers. Every dweller had different feathers. Itzcoatl led us to a woman, dressed in the same way as the rest except she had her helmet resting on the table in front of her. The plumage on top in full view.
“Badge,” she said. I could tell this was not like the library, there was no room for lighthearted banter here. I handed my badge over wordlessly. She looked at it then gave it back. “Go on,” she ordered.
“I need a bow,” I said without hesitation. She grunted and went through a door behind her. She was back within minutes with a very ordinary looking bow and a collection of arrows. “Thank you,” I stated and took the bow from the counter, purposefully leaving the arrows. The very basics of bow handling as a cultivator taught you how to summon your own arrows; which was why I had only asked for the bow…
She grabbed the arrows and disappeared again. Figuring that our exchange was over, I left. Safi and Itzcoatl had stayed a few metres away - perfectly happy not engaging with the silent pressure exuding from the dweller woman.
“Time to go?” I asked as I clipped the bow into the holder on my back, helpfully provided by the dweller woman.
“Mission time,” said an excited Safi.
“What exactly is the mission?” asked Itzcoatl.
“Material gathering: silo.” Safi replied, Elder Laaka had provided us with two missions each. Material gathering: silo was the only one we shared.
“Silo… Never thought I’d be doing silo again.” sighed Itzcoatl. I figured it was a mission everyone went through at the beginning of their journey and from his reaction, perhaps not the most riveting one. Well, not if I had anything to do about it.
We finally took the route I recognised, the one out of the sect. We exited the giant tower, allowed Safi the time for a longing gaze towards the city she still had not visited, then headed out. South this time. We walked across an extremely sturdy bridge rivalled only by the large stone bridge connecting the city and the sect. It was wide, most likely to accommodate for any large beasts entering the sect, dead or alive.
“I recommend putting on the gloves and coat now,” said Itzcoatl.
“I don’t remember it being especially cold once we’d entered the forest on our way here,” remarked Safi.
“It never gets too cold in the forest to the North, we think it’s a warm wind current. The southern jungle gets just as cold as everywhere else.” I put them on, just remembering the blizzard Safi and I were stuck in at the start of our journey made me shiver. If it was going to be that cold, I was even more thankful for the provided clothing.
As we approached the end of the bridge, we noticed a couple of guards, dressed similarly to the dwellers. For weapons they had only spears, they barely glanced at us as we stepped from the bridge onto rock.
We were still on the side of the mountain and yet, the jungle trees stretched far above us. So densely thick that you could see only a few metres inside. Certainly, this was not similar to the forest we had ventured through on the way to Gutura.
We descended the mountain path, and were immediately subjected to the icy cold. The warmth of the belly of the mountain was nothing more than a pleasant memory. By the time we reached the floor we were already inside the jungle, following a well-worn path that looked strange against the surroundings of untamed labyrinthian wilderness.
The jungle was loud, creatures far above us communicated without caring about us ground dwellers. The trees were so tightly packed and competitive that hardly any light managed to get through, what little did was dyed green providing an ethereal atmosphere to our jungle trek.
Itzcoatl led the way, as was becoming normal. I stopped him to let Safi and I take the lead. We knew what we were looking for, and there would be no point in doing missions if not completed on our own merit. To his credit, Itzcoatl seemed like he understood.
We whispered to communicate, I was sure it was unnecessary considering the cacophony of the surrounding wildlife but it made both Safi and I a great deal more comfortable being as quiet as possible.
Like Itzcoatl had warned us about, there was snow on the ground. It was dirty, well-trodden snow on the path but almost untouched everywhere else. Even though cultivators were well equipped for extreme temperatures, having the help of a thick coat was always welcome.
The masks stayed in our bags for the time being, Itzcoatl had told us that they were more than likely going to go unused for this mission, but as a sect rule we were required to take them anyway.
The mission required some simple materials be gathered. Safi was an extremely well-read person and during our travel to Gutura had taught me a lot about the basic knowledge of the world. Hence, I knew we were looking for a creature, an agile one called the trink, adept at gliding from tree to tree.
Safi and I both had our necks craned skywards, searching for the slightest movement that could be a trink. We also needed a type of tree, Gutura made use of it’s bark in extremely large quantities. It was highly durable and it grew back almost overnight.
We were less worried about the latter task considering we were surrounded on all sides by the exact tree we were looking for. Itzcoatl reminded us of the distance limitation, being the most basic, low-level disciples we were only allowed a certain distance from the sect.
We began to search, treading off the beaten path. Sticking together, Safi and I were both circulating our eye techniques, combing the trees for any movement. I had sent Itzcoatl to the trees above us, he pranced from branch to branch as if he were a trink himself. It was clear to see he had been trained here.
After only a small amount of time, Safi stopped in front of me and unhurriedly pointed upwards. I followed her hand and sure enough, a trink. I took the bow from my back as silently as I could and slowly pulled the string back. As I pulled, an arrow formed. The tip rested nicely on my thumb and index finger. I imbued it with all of the imaginary arrow technique I could muster, which wasn’t much, then I let it fly.
The arrow sailed nicely through the air, and thunked into the tree, piercing the poor creature's tail. In its surprise it let go of the tree and panicked as it dangled from it’s pinned posterior appendage. Before I could even pull the string back for another shot, itzcoatl was next to it and had plunged a knife into its head.
“Sorry,” I said, more apologising to the trink than anything.
“That was a bad shot,” remarked Safi, still whispering.
“I’m a little out of practice,” I admitted. Perhaps I should have done some shooting before leaving.
“Plenty of time for that, don’t worry,” she said reassuringly. “Next one’s mine.”
I knew exactly how to leave the Sect, physically. It was a rather simple route, and it was not at all the direction we were going. I thought to speak up but Safi seemed absolutely fine with our current trajectory so I kept my curiosities to myself.
After our introductions Itzcoatl had remained silent, he seemed quite straightforward. Not shy, just direct. I imagined it would have got him into trouble considering how much cultivators enjoy being offended.
We entered a room as yet unexplored by me or Safi. I knew Safi had never been here because she was gazing around unabashedly, eyes sparkling with childlike wonder. I looked around the quite normal-looking room as well. It was definitely a workshop of some sort, clothing I guessed considering the looms and stitching stations. It was nothing that would garner a reaction like Safi’s, or so I thought. I saw, hanging up on the wall, something I never expected. A mask. Not a decorative one, a practical one. With a tight, intricate mesh, a sealed lining and a pair of goggles. I must have been staring because Safi tapped me on the shoulder.
“What? Impressed?” she smirked.
“I am,” I freely admitted. It was enough for me to consider the fact that this was not the backwater, no-name world I had thought it was. But, the fact remained that I did not recognise it. I didn’t know the creatures, the clans, the plants, the landmarks, none of it.
I knew every significant world. I knew every world advanced enough to make masks, of that I was certain. Safi and Itzcoatl were talking with someone, presumably getting their own set of equipment. I was busy pondering. Was this a newly advanced world? Was I floating around as a soul for longer than I had anticipated? Or is this some sort of pet-project for a Celestial Immortal.
I was snapped out of my self-imposed stupor by another tap on the shoulder, a little harder this time. “What’s the matter with you?” she asked a little worriedly.
“Nothing, I was just having some thoughts.”
“That much is obvious,” she said. “Is it something you want to talk about?”
“It’s not important right this second. We can talk about it later,” I assured her. She nodded, happy that I was not planning on keeping it to myself. She dropped some gear into my arms. A mask similar to the ones on the wall, a pair of gloves and a coat.
“This is the Errander kit. The standard clothing for missions, of course as we gain ranks we can commission a kit that suits our style a little better,” she said.
“I was not expecting where we were going to be this dangerous.”
“Pleasant surprise?” she asked with a coy smile.
“Certainly an exciting one.” I held the mask over my face. “Although, how am I supposed to show off my shocking good looks with this in the way?”
“Take it off if you want, then you can be a handsome dead body.” We laughed, earning a petulant look from Itzcoatl.
“Are you two finished flirting?”
“Are we?” Asked Safi.
“I don’t have a bow yet…” I realised.
“Ah, then you’ll have to put up with it for a little longer,” she giggled at Itzcoatl as he trudged dishearteningly out of the room.
I remembered Elder Laaka had called them the dwellers - The people that I would get my bow from. I was pleased we had Itzcoatl with us, he took us to them in a matter of minutes. As the name implied, we had to go down. Quite a long way, at that.
The dwellers turned out to be a serious bunch. They each had two swords hanging from their waists and a shield on their backs. They wore armour, not robes. Intricate helmets adorned their head, topped by a few feathers. Every dweller had different feathers. Itzcoatl led us to a woman, dressed in the same way as the rest except she had her helmet resting on the table in front of her. The plumage on top in full view.
“Badge,” she said. I could tell this was not like the library, there was no room for lighthearted banter here. I handed my badge over wordlessly. She looked at it then gave it back. “Go on,” she ordered.
“I need a bow,” I said without hesitation. She grunted and went through a door behind her. She was back within minutes with a very ordinary looking bow and a collection of arrows. “Thank you,” I stated and took the bow from the counter, purposefully leaving the arrows. The very basics of bow handling as a cultivator taught you how to summon your own arrows; which was why I had only asked for the bow…
She grabbed the arrows and disappeared again. Figuring that our exchange was over, I left. Safi and Itzcoatl had stayed a few metres away - perfectly happy not engaging with the silent pressure exuding from the dweller woman.
“Time to go?” I asked as I clipped the bow into the holder on my back, helpfully provided by the dweller woman.
“Mission time,” said an excited Safi.
“What exactly is the mission?” asked Itzcoatl.
“Material gathering: silo.” Safi replied, Elder Laaka had provided us with two missions each. Material gathering: silo was the only one we shared.
“Silo… Never thought I’d be doing silo again.” sighed Itzcoatl. I figured it was a mission everyone went through at the beginning of their journey and from his reaction, perhaps not the most riveting one. Well, not if I had anything to do about it.
We finally took the route I recognised, the one out of the sect. We exited the giant tower, allowed Safi the time for a longing gaze towards the city she still had not visited, then headed out. South this time. We walked across an extremely sturdy bridge rivalled only by the large stone bridge connecting the city and the sect. It was wide, most likely to accommodate for any large beasts entering the sect, dead or alive.
“I recommend putting on the gloves and coat now,” said Itzcoatl.
“I don’t remember it being especially cold once we’d entered the forest on our way here,” remarked Safi.
“It never gets too cold in the forest to the North, we think it’s a warm wind current. The southern jungle gets just as cold as everywhere else.” I put them on, just remembering the blizzard Safi and I were stuck in at the start of our journey made me shiver. If it was going to be that cold, I was even more thankful for the provided clothing.
As we approached the end of the bridge, we noticed a couple of guards, dressed similarly to the dwellers. For weapons they had only spears, they barely glanced at us as we stepped from the bridge onto rock.
We were still on the side of the mountain and yet, the jungle trees stretched far above us. So densely thick that you could see only a few metres inside. Certainly, this was not similar to the forest we had ventured through on the way to Gutura.
We descended the mountain path, and were immediately subjected to the icy cold. The warmth of the belly of the mountain was nothing more than a pleasant memory. By the time we reached the floor we were already inside the jungle, following a well-worn path that looked strange against the surroundings of untamed labyrinthian wilderness.
The jungle was loud, creatures far above us communicated without caring about us ground dwellers. The trees were so tightly packed and competitive that hardly any light managed to get through, what little did was dyed green providing an ethereal atmosphere to our jungle trek.
Itzcoatl led the way, as was becoming normal. I stopped him to let Safi and I take the lead. We knew what we were looking for, and there would be no point in doing missions if not completed on our own merit. To his credit, Itzcoatl seemed like he understood.
We whispered to communicate, I was sure it was unnecessary considering the cacophony of the surrounding wildlife but it made both Safi and I a great deal more comfortable being as quiet as possible.
Like Itzcoatl had warned us about, there was snow on the ground. It was dirty, well-trodden snow on the path but almost untouched everywhere else. Even though cultivators were well equipped for extreme temperatures, having the help of a thick coat was always welcome.
The masks stayed in our bags for the time being, Itzcoatl had told us that they were more than likely going to go unused for this mission, but as a sect rule we were required to take them anyway.
The mission required some simple materials be gathered. Safi was an extremely well-read person and during our travel to Gutura had taught me a lot about the basic knowledge of the world. Hence, I knew we were looking for a creature, an agile one called the trink, adept at gliding from tree to tree.
Safi and I both had our necks craned skywards, searching for the slightest movement that could be a trink. We also needed a type of tree, Gutura made use of it’s bark in extremely large quantities. It was highly durable and it grew back almost overnight.
We were less worried about the latter task considering we were surrounded on all sides by the exact tree we were looking for. Itzcoatl reminded us of the distance limitation, being the most basic, low-level disciples we were only allowed a certain distance from the sect.
We began to search, treading off the beaten path. Sticking together, Safi and I were both circulating our eye techniques, combing the trees for any movement. I had sent Itzcoatl to the trees above us, he pranced from branch to branch as if he were a trink himself. It was clear to see he had been trained here.
After only a small amount of time, Safi stopped in front of me and unhurriedly pointed upwards. I followed her hand and sure enough, a trink. I took the bow from my back as silently as I could and slowly pulled the string back. As I pulled, an arrow formed. The tip rested nicely on my thumb and index finger. I imbued it with all of the imaginary arrow technique I could muster, which wasn’t much, then I let it fly.
The arrow sailed nicely through the air, and thunked into the tree, piercing the poor creature's tail. In its surprise it let go of the tree and panicked as it dangled from it’s pinned posterior appendage. Before I could even pull the string back for another shot, itzcoatl was next to it and had plunged a knife into its head.
“Sorry,” I said, more apologising to the trink than anything.
“That was a bad shot,” remarked Safi, still whispering.
“I’m a little out of practice,” I admitted. Perhaps I should have done some shooting before leaving.
“Plenty of time for that, don’t worry,” she said reassuringly. “Next one’s mine.”
